Survivor
by Preppygirl14
Summary: Barbara Henderson is not the girl you think would make it. But she has, and she'll fight tooth and nail until the end. Then she met Rick's group when they came to the farm after Carl was shot. And she would never think she would find a common ground with someone like Daryl Dixon but she did. He was also a survivor like her.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The Beginning of the End

...

Nobody knows exactly when the world ended. Nobody noticed and when they did, it was already too late. It all started like a rumor, weird videos and conspiracy theories, before the world as we knew it ended so suddenly, in the blink of an eye. The dead started walking and the living started running...

Barbara Henderson was a twenty-two year old med student in Georgia University. She had just finished pre-med a year ago and was in the right way to become a doctor a few years before the rest of her class. Everyone who knew her knew she already had her life figured out. She herself believed that. She was young and smart, had a nice boyfriend and her dad already moved strings so she could get plenty of experience before anyone else.

It was mid-January, and she was spending her winter break with her family in Atlanta. They lived in Tuxedo Park, one of the most exclusive parts in town. That was who she was. She was born with a silver spoon well-placed in her mouth but even then, she had worked hard for what she wanted. Like getting into university. Her dad hadn't had to pull any strings unlike with her elder brother Brett, who had need a bit of a helping hand with his application to Duke. And also she had her feet more grounded than her younger sister Isabella, who didn't seem to want to do anything with her life but to be a model. Barbara loved her, but her sister was getting out of control. She was still in high school and partied as hard as Barbara's sorority's sisters. So that's why she decided to spend the holidays at home instead to going somewhere else, in the hopes to keep her sister in check. It wasn't like she didn't like parties, she did, but she knew there were more important things in life.

Until then, Isabella behaved so when she invited Barbie to a party, the older sister accepted. The sisters dressed up and left the house as their dad was receiving a doctor. Barbara thought maybe he was just trying to get more favors for her but she noticed the nervous and urgent look in both men faces. She didn't say anything though, until her boyfriend Blake, was driving them to the party.

"Did you notice the look in Dad's face?" Barbie asked her sister turning in her sit to look at her. The younger blond girl reapplied her makeup before answering and shrugging.

"Maybe he was trying to sneak you into another surgery," Isabella dismissed it but the older girl shook her head.

"This was different. He was so serious... I'm worried something bad happen to him or... Mom," Barbie said turning in her sit and looking ahead, biting her lip lightly.

"You always worry about something and usually it's nothing," Isabella said. "Remember those scary videos you showed me?"

"Those are real," Barbie replied and frowned. Blake rose an eyebrow smiling and glanced at her.

"The video of the guy being shot that I showed you?"

The brunette detected the amusement in his voice and glared at her boyfriend.

"You said it was real. You told me so, and they all over the internet."

The guy shrugged.

"Yeah, well, I think they're fake. Maybe a prank or something."

The girl said nothing but she couldn't shook the feeling that something wasn't right.

Only half an hour later her fears were confirmed when her phone rang. It was her dad and he was beyond himself. He asked where they were and when she told him he demanded them to come back immediately. He even shouted at Blake when he tried to calm him down.

Feeling something was bad, they dragged Isabella away-who was luckily barely starting to get drunk, and they drove home.

As they drove as fast as they could, they realized they weren't the only ones. They crossed a lot of cars practically flying on the road. One passed very near them and crashed against a tree. Both girls yelped.

The guys were shocked as they saw people struggling the inside and then a lot of blood, splashing on the windows.

Isabelle screamed.

"We should call the police and see if they need help!" Barbie said but Blake shook his head, suddenly pale as a ghost.

"Your dad told me not to stop until we've reached the house."

"Those people need help! Did you see the blood!" the girl told him starting to freak out but dialed 911. However the line was dead.

"It's not ringing," she said lowering her phone slowly, her fear starting to grow by the minute. Something was wrong. And not only on her house.

Barbara saw people leaving their houses, their cars packed. She didn't understand. And then with a shiver she recalled those videos. In one of them a man had been shot dead in the chest. And then, moments later he woke up somehow, growling. Blake had told her it was just a joke but what if... what if...

They reached their house and Blake had to park at the end of the driveway because all of her dad's vans were out and being loaded with boxes and guns... What the hell?

Blake and the sisters left the car and walked to the house confused, shocked and scared. William Henderson, Barbara and Isabelle's father, was in the door instructing the people in there and he ran to them the moment he spotted them.

"Dad!" Barbara walked as fast as she could with her ten-inched high heels in the gravel. "What's going on?"

The man immediately hugged the girls tightly.

"Oh, thanks God you are here! Are you alright? Are you bitten?"

He stepped away and looked them over as the girl frowned confused.

"Did you say bitten?" Isabelle asked confused.

"Go quick and change! Jeans, jackets and boots, no fucking heels. We're leaving now!"

The girls were practically dragged by their dad with Blake following them as confused as them.

"What?! No! Why? Where?" Isabelle immediately complained.

"It's hard to explain. Those videos you showed us are real," their dad said crossing the hall and pushing them upstairs.

"What?"

"Dad..."

"I'll explain later. Now go! Change and grab some clothes and important stuff you need. And quick!"

His voice was so scared that almost froze Barbara in the spot. Her dad had never been afraid in his life. Never. Both girls took off their heels and ran upstairs both going to their respective rooms.

Barbara entered her room closing the door behind her and went to her closet pulling off her dress while at it. She put on a bra and jeans. She also put on her riding boots, a random pink shirt and a Barbour jacket. She took her backpack and threw her things in her bed. She put some underwear, socks and shirts on it, her toothbrush, deodorant and body wash. Then she took some small books, Emma by Jane Austen, the Great Gatsby and Wuthering Heights. She stuffed some photos of her family and friends and then closed the back pack. She was about to leave when she turned and picked her med books. Her stethoscope and a med kit she was always carrying but never used. She had a feeling she would need them.

She went down and saw her dad telling his driver to take the other car and go. The maids, and cook were already in one of the cars. Arthur, was the drivers name, smiled at her dad apologetically, briefly hugged him and thanked him and then left.

"Give me," the man said taking her things and putting them quickly in the trunk of the other car. Blake was sitting on the floor, his hands in his hair, looking lost.

The brunette looked at her dad.

"What is going on?"

The man had never looked older and he swallowed.

"It is virus. George, the man who came early told me it was some military shit. It went out of control and now it's spreading."

"The videos..."

"The virus killed people... and then reanimated the corpses."

Barbara's heart stopped for a second and she felt as a bucket of icy water had been poured over her.

"What?"

"Corpses are reanimated. And they can walk and... eat. Human... living flesh, and if you're bit, you turn."

Barbara breath was stuck somewhere in her throat and he shook her head, unable to process the information.

"No, it's impossible..."

"Apparently it's not. Where the fuck it's your sister?! Isabelle Katherine Henderson, they're not fucking vacations, come down this minute!"

Her dad lost his patience and ran upstairs to get Isabelle.

Barbara, unable to do anything or have a coherent though, went to Blake.

"Blake..."

"The lines are dead. And there's no internet," he looked up and she saw actual tears. "I don't know if my mom... I need to go... I need to get her... but your dad said it was going to be a blood bath near downtown... But I need to know..."

William's grumbling interrupted Blake, as the man dragged her daughter's downstairs.

"This is fucking serious! It's not a fucking holiday, missy!"

"Where is Mom? And Brett?"

Barbara asked her dad starting to panic again.

"She's in the study wanting to bring all the photos with us... as if we had a lot of space to begin with-"

"Here!" Claire Henderson walked in, carrying a bunch of albums. She handled them to her husband and he quickly went to the car.

"Let's the fuck out of here! Brett! Brett!"

William went quickly to the car, threw the albums in the truck and closed it but even in the driveway he heard the yells. It was his son. His heart stopped but his legs moved as he re-entered the house and followed the noises along with his family to the kitchen.

Brett was standing in the middle of the kitchen, pinning their former gardener to the wall. But he wasn't the same man, his eyes were a milky bluish and his skin was grayish. He was growling and snapping her jaws at Brett and his mouth was smeared with blood, fresh blood.

William went to his son immediately but Claire was faster, unfortunately she didn't saw their former cleaning lady, dragging across the floor towards Brett. The walker grabbed Claire's leg and before she could turn, she bit her ankle, tearing out the flesh. The woman hauled in pain.

"No!" William screamed looking at the blood and quickly stumped on the walkers head. Once, twice, until it turned into a gory mess, while holding her wife.

Barbara watched the whole thing in horror her mind slowing things down and before she realized, she had took the biggest kitchen knife they had and pushed it through the walker that kept Brett pinned to the wall. The blood splashing her face and soaking her hands in red.

Despite just being saved by her, Brett stared at her as she was seeing her for the first time. But the girl didn't just stand there. She grabbed the towel and ran to her mom, pressing down on the bite.

"We need to stop the bleeding-" she started saying, but if what her dad had said it was true... No, it couldn't be.

"We have to go," William snapped carrying her wife in arms as Barbara kept pressed the towel on her ankle, struggling to keep with her dad's strides.

They reached the car but the driveway was full of walkers already.

William placed carefully her wife in one of the back seats of the minivan and Barbara quickly climbed next to her, pressing her ankle with the towel that was already soaked in her blood.

Isabelle and Brett climbed behind them and Blake and William climbed in the driver and copilot's seat. The doors were closed and by the time the walkers reached them, William rolled them over without a second thought.

He had a determinate look in his eyes, but he was pale, his forehead was sweaty and he grabbed the wheel so hard it almost hurt. But he was conscious.

"We need to take her to a hospital..." Blake started saying.

"No," Barbara surprised them all. "Those things would have run them all over. The infection probably started there..."

"So what now?" Brett asked, his voice shaky.

"Pass me my medical kit."

"What are you going to do?" Brett asked her but Isabelle was already turned to fetch it from the trunk.

"I'm going to suture her... If she keeps loosing blood she's going to die..."

"I'm going to die anyway..." It was the first thing Claire said since she was bitten. Her voice was weak but she opened her eyes and focused them on Barbara.

"George told us... what happens. I'm going to turn... don't let me turn."

Barbara shook her head.

"You're not going to die, Mom. I'm going to fix you," the brunette grabbed the medical kit her sister passed them and she quickly took out antiseptic, a surgical needle and thread.

Barbara sutured her mother as best and as gentle as she could in a moving vehicle. When she finished, she was drained, her mother had screamed so much in pain they were being follow by a small group of walkers as they exited Atlanta. So she was dying to get some sleep but she couldn't, she just held her mother's hand and Isabelle held the other. When her little sister fell asleep her mother looked up to Barbara.

"Took them," she told her daughter. "The pearls."

The girl's eyes traveled to her mother's neck were a row of pears were there. Her stomach dropped and she shook. She couldn't give up that easily.

"No... no they're..."

"They were my mother's... and now, they are yours... take them."

With shaking hands and watering eyes, she unclasped gently and pulled them in the pocket of her jacket.

"No my bracelet... it's for Isabelle..."

The girl nodded and took her mother gold thin bracelet and pulled it with the necklace.

Claire's fever just kept going and three hours later she died. Their dad didn't say anything as he pulled out in a desert road. He took their mother's body out and took them away where they couldn't see it, but they heard the shot.

* * *

"Where are we going?" Isabella's small voice seemed to ring in the deafening silence.

Their dad took a moment to answer. They were stuck in the traffic a couple of kilometers outside of Atlanta.

"To your aunt Anette's," their dad replied after a moment. "She and her husband have a farm in Senoia."

"You think it'll be safe there?" Brett asked him with a blank face, and looked at Barbara. The girl hadn't said a word since her mother had passed and had her forehead against the window, staring out.

"It has to be. There are open spaces and little towns there... not crowded cities full of... those things."

Brett nodded.

"Who's your aunt Annette?" Blake asked with a strained voice to no one in particular.

"Mom's only cousin..." Brett responded weekly. "She married this guy... Hershel Greene."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Strained Miracles

...

It was a quiet morning. It was sunny, the sky was blue and there was a soft breeze. Barbara was reading on her opened window, enjoying of the quietness of the morning when Maggie's scream rang across the house.

"DAD!" she screamed and Barbara quickly closed her book and went down to see what was going on. The urgency in her cousin's voice wasn't a good sign.

By the time she went down, Patricia, Hershel and, Blake and Brett, both who were holding a bat, followed Maggie outside.

"What's going on?" Isabelle asked her and the brunette just shook her head. Both sisters went after the rest of their family and saw a sheriff carrying a boy, running to the house.

Barbara's stomach flipped and she felt shivers running down her spine. The boy was unconscious and the man looked desperate.

"Was he bit?!" Hershel asked at the stranger without leaving the porch. If he was, they wouldn't be able to help the stranger.

"Shot... by your man," the man responded, his voice raspy and chocked.

"Otis?" Patricia asked worried as Hershel hurried to the man.

"He told me to find Hershel. Is that you? Help him, help my boy..."

"Step inside," Hershel urged him inside.

"Barbie! Get ready!"

The brunette nodded at him as she and Maggie entered quickly the house. Hershel was behind them, rolling up his sleeves and giving instructions, as the cop carrying the boy followed him quickly.

"Patricia, I need my full kit. Maggie..."

"Yeah?"

"Painkillers, coagulants, grab everything. Clean towels, sheets, alcohol," Barbara followed them to the downstairs guest room and she went directly to the bathroom. She picked up her hair in a ponytail and then quickly washed her hands as Hershel opened the bed. The girl took off a big gold seal ring that was on her thumb and shoved it in her shorts pockets before washing her hands quickly.

"In here," the old man said and the cop laid carefully the unconscious boy on the bare bed.

Barbara quickly stepped into the room and her stomach turned at the sight of the blood. Not because she was squeamish, far from it, but the fact that it was just a little boy was freaking her out a little. They needed to save him.

"Pillowcase," Hershel instructed the cop as he quickly unbuckled the boy's belt and Barbara stepped in quickly opening his soaked shirt.

"Is he... is he?" the man bumbling unable to focus.

"Pillowcase!" Hershel snapped at him.

"Is he alive?" The man asked as Patricia, Maggie and Isabelle entered the room carrying towels, meds, and sheets.

The cop was distracted so Barbara took the pillowcase, folded and the cop pressed it to the wound, getting the idea. Hershel quickly took the stethoscope Patricia offered him, put it on and pressed the end to the boy's chest.

Barbara and the cop looked expectant at Hershel.

"I got a beat," the man said. "It's faint."

The cop started shaking violently so Barbara put a gentle but firm hand on his arm.

"I got this," she told him and the man moved clumsily out of the way. The brunette quickly stepped in and pressed the pad to the wound.

"Maggie, Ellie..." Hershel called them and Maggie quickly pulled back the cop because he was still in the way.

"We need some space," she told him gently.

"What is your name?" Hershel asked the cop.

"Rick," the man stuttered, sweating. "I'm Rick."

"Rick, were going to do everything we can, okay?" Hershel talked to him as he put an IV in the boy's arm and Maggie held up the water bag.

"You need to give us room, okay?"

Rick snapped out of his state long enough to leave the room, and left his son to the care of strangers. Barbara did everything in her power to focus on helping the boy and not think about her dad.

* * *

When Rick came back to the room, they had cleaned the boy's wound shot and counted the pieces. It was going to be difficult to fix, and Barbara didn't think he would make it. But she would never said so and least in front of Rick. He seemed like he was going to lose his mind any moment now.

Behind him was Otis, looking confused as he didn't know where he was and another man Barbara guessed was a cop and Rick's friend. He looked concerned for the boy too.

"You know his blood type?" The girl asked the man and Rick barely tore his eyes from his son to glance at her.

"A positive. Like mine."

"That's fortunate," Hershel said cleaning the wound. "Don't wander off. I'm gonna need you." Then the old man looked up at Otis who looked overwhelmed and still shocked. "What happened?"

Otis told them he had shot the buck and went through hitting the boy.

"That must have slowed the bullet down and saved the boy," Hershel told Rick. "The bullet broke up into pieces. I counted six. We'll need to get them out."

"My wife doesn't know. My wife doesn't know," Rick said and finally broke down.

* * *

The worst part was that they had anything to anesthetize the little boy and his screams were like someone was punching Barbara over and over. She heard then her mother's screams as she sutured her... as she was bitten.

"STOP! You are killing him!" Rick's scream snapped out of her trance, and she just been rubbing alcohol absentmindedly in his arm.

"If I don't take the pieces out, he's going to die," Hershel snapped strained but calm, a feat Barbara was sure wouldn't be able to manage right now.

"He needs blood!" Maggie said and the girl shook her head, concentration on the job she had to do.

She took the IV and hooked it to Rick's arm, pumping the blood out as Carl, kept crying out in the bed. Then he couldn't take the pain anymore and passed out.

"Wait, wait," Shane, who had been holding Carl down told Hershel, nodding worried at the boy.

"He just passed out," the man explained tiredly and he finally pulled a piece out from the wound.

"One down... five to go."

* * *

"Lori needs to be here. Needs to know what happened," Rick said as Barbie pumped blood into Carl. His wound has been patched but he still had some fragments in his body. And for the looks of it, he had internal bleeding.

"The boy will need more blood. You cannot go more than five feet from here," Hershel told him, his voice firm. Rick stood up, running his hands through his hair looking desperate.

"She's his mother. She deserves to know... She needs to be here," he then left the room followed by Shane.

Barbie looked at Hershel who sighed and looked down at the boy sadly.

"We'll need to have a surgery."

The girl nodded.

"I know. He has a deeper injury, probably a blood vessel. But we have nothing to do it. We have no supplies and just medical kit won't be enough. We need to anesthetize him at least."

The old man looked at the girl and then down at the boy.

"Are you ready to do it?" he asked her and even if she wasn't, she would do it.

"Yes."

"It's not certain we can save him."

"I know."

Hershel left her with Carl to go and tell this to Rick and Shane. The risks of the operation and the supplies they needed. Rick couldn't go because they needed him for the blood transfusions. So Otis and Shane left for the nearest high school. It had been a safe zone before it was overrun, and probably, maybe, with a lot of luck, they would find everything in there.

Maggie also left to bring Carl's mother and to tell the rest of Rick's group what had happened.

As Barbie pumped Carl with blood, she tried not to think about it, but she couldn't help it. She thought about her mom, how she couldn't save it. She knew Hershel wasn't sure they could save Carl and she was honest, she didn't believe it either. But she would try her best. She would do everything in her power to save this kid.

* * *

The wait was the worst part. They had been long gone and they didn't know if they could find anything.

Patricia offered to take Barbie's place and told her to go and rest. She would need her strength to operate that kid later. She went up to her room, feeling beaten up.

She saw Blake in the living room but she just needed to be alone for a moment. She lay on her bed and pulled the ring out of her pocket and put it on her thumb, and before she knew it, she had fallen asleep.

* * *

When Barbie woke up it was dark outside. She sat quickly and went down feeling stupid for falling asleep, but Otis and Shane hadn't come back yet.

Carl's mother, Lori was next to his son when she walked into the room, where was also Hershel and Rick.

"She's my niece, Barbie. She was a med-student, and she will help me," Hershel introduced her and the girl smiled at the woman who sat up looking at her as if the girl was the best present ever.

"Are you a doctor?" The woman asked, thinking the girl looked impossible young to be one. She looked like she was in her teens.

"No, really. I was just a student. I finished pre-med and did a year in med school before everything started."

Lori seemed deflated at the information.

"But I've been in surgeries before."

Both Rick and Lori looked up to her and she quickly explained.

"My dad pulled some strings so I could have experience before everyone else. I was in six surgeries and helped the surgeon on two of those. I know it doesn't seem like a veterinarian would make a good surgeon, but Hershel is. Also, after everything happened, I performed some myself."

That seemed to gave both parents strength and hope. Barbara didn't say, however, that from the six she had performed on a safe zone, only two had been successful due to the lack of medical equipment.

* * *

Out of the blue, the boy coughed and woke up. Before they could call them, Rick and Lori rushed into the room to their son's side.

The boy took deep breaths, shaking lightly.

"Where are we?" He asked and Lori knelt next to her son, running her hand through his hair softly.

"This man," Rick said smiling," is Hershel. And this girl is Barbie. We're in their house. You had an accident."

Both Hershel and Barbara smiled to the little boy, completely relieved to see him awake and lucid. He was a little breathless but he seemed fine. He had made it.

"It hurts... a lot," the boy said, fidgeting with the bandages and Lori took his hand away softly.

"I know, baby."

"You should've seen it," Carl then said to his mom with a big bright smile.

"What?" Lori asked.

"The deer," Carl replied as his mom petted his hair. "It was so pretty mom. It was so close. And I don't remember..." He stopped talking and his eyes went blank. He just laid there frozen, and not breathing.

"Carl?" Rick called him but the boy just stayed like that.

Barbie stepped in looking at him. No, no. He was okay. He was. He couldn't just... no... And then, startling all of them, the boy started to shook violently. Rick, Lori and Barbie, stepped into to hold him down but Hershel was faster, stopping them.

"Stop. He's having a seizure. You hold him down you could hurt him," he told them and Barbara stepped back, ashamed she had forgotten. That she had acted out of instinct instead of professional.

"You can stop it?!" Lori asked Hershel desperate.

"He has to go through it," the man said and then stepped back.

Rick took his wife and held her back and all of them just stared at Carl shaking in bed, violently, unable to help him. Finally the boy stopped and passed out and almost at the same time they both leaned over him. Hershel opened his lid and looked into his pupil.

"His brain isn't getting enough blood. His pressure keeps dropping and he will need another transfusion," Hershel said exterminating the boy.

"Okay, I'm ready," Rick said weakly.

"I can't take anymore of you. Your body could shut down and go into a coma," Hershel told him seriously.

"You're wasting time," Rick replied determinate and he just extended his parched arm. Something in him made Barbie stare. He reminded her of her dad, of his determination and his sacrifice for his family. Her heart felt like something was slowly squeezing it and she took a few breaths.

"Wait," she said and all eyes turned to her. The girl looked at Hershel and extended her arm. "I am A-positive too."

Something in Hershel's eye shone as she looked at her but she couldn't say what. Rick and Lori stared at her surprised.

"You don't have to," Rick started to say but the girl shook her head.

"I want to help. And we're not going to be better if go into a coma," then she turned to Hershel and walked to him, extending her arm.

"Do it."

* * *

Carl was losing blood fast and despite the transfusions they couldn't wait any longer. They still didn't have the supplies, but if they didn't do the surgery, Carl would die anyway.

Rick and Lori seemed lost as they considered that but they accepted it, at the end.

"Do it," Rick told to Hershel and the man nodded.

Patricia quickly brought down a table and between her, Hershel, Rick and Lori moved Carl to the table. Barbie was weakened by the transfusion but still was determinate to help Hershel.

Patricia quickly brought Hershel's surgery utensils and the living room lamp, as he put on a gloves and a surgical mask.

Hershel took his scalpel and Barbie moved to be on Carl's other side. The old man looked up to the couple behind her.

"Rick, Lori, you may want to step back."

The man was about to cut into the boy when the sound of a car stopped them all.

"They made it," Barbie said straitening up.

"Patricia stay with him," Hershel instructed them, and they all went to the door.

Barbara, Hershel, Lori, Rick, Brett and another guy form Rick's group went out and saw Shane parking quickly and then taking two big bags from the truck. He passed one to Hershel and Barbie took the other. The old man was about to turn when he noticed Shane was the only one in the trunk.

"Otis?" He asked but already knowing the answer.

Shane couldn't answer but his face said it all.

"He... he..."

Maggie's eyes watered up and Barbara closed her eyes. It shouldn't surprise her. It shouldn't hurt by now. Another day, another death. It was how the world worked now but either way hurt when it happened. She had only known Otis for a month, but he had been a good guy. He hadn't deserved it.

"We say nothing to Patricia," Hershel's voice snapped Barbie out of it. "Not till after. I need her." Then he looked at her. "I need you too."

The girl swallowed hard and nodded. Right, Carl was still inside, dying on a table.

She turned around and followed him inside.

* * *

The operation seemed to last forever and after it was done, it all seemed like a blur. The death of Otis then felt onto Barbara and she saw Patricia cleaning up Carl, easy and calm now that the boy was out of danger. She still didn't know it.

They bandaged the boy and put if back into bed, carefully, and then Barbara made another transfusion. She stayed in the room as Hershel took Patricia out to tell her the news.

She wasn't sure but she had thought she heard her cry. And even with that, she felt a weird calm. They had made it. Carl had made it. She hadn't thought so. She didn't believe in miracles anymore, but the little boy had made it and that was good enough for now.

* * *

When the transfusion was done, Barbara herself took the IV out of her arm, patched her up and then hooked an IV to Carl's arm. She felt incredibly weak and like she would fall asleep anytime now.

She left the room, and Lori entered immediately.

"Thank you," the woman told Barbara before she left. The girl turned to her and Lori gave her a watery smile. "You saved my son."

The girl felt her throat closing so she just nodded and left. Blake brought her some chocolate pudding, a sandwich and water. It was a lot of food but she ate it without making a sound. And then just fell asleep, the trauma of the whole day slowly slipping away and nightmares coming in.

* * *

They were another two members of Rick's group that had stayed the night, but yesterday was so frantic to her she hadn't noticed them nor met them. Their names were Glenn and T-Dog and she liked them. They were good guys, she could tell. They went out early in the morning with Shane, Maggie, Brett, Blake and Isabelle to pick up big rocks for Otis grave. She offered to help but they all refused and insisted she stayed in the house. Barbara didn't protest, though. She was completely exhausted and she wanted to check on Carl.

When she entered the room Hershel, Rick and Lori were already there and greeted her. The old man was checking the Carl's pulse and then he finally woke up.

Rick and Lori leaned to the boy and he looked up to them.

"Sophia," the boy said. "Is she okay?"

Barbara noticed a flash of worry in Rick's face, unnoticed by his son or wife.

"She's fine," he assured the boy.

"Okay," Carl said and then fell asleep again.

Rick feel into his chair, relief flooring his face and then the door opened and T-Dog entered the room.

"They're here."

...

They all went out and the others were already gathered near the porch watching the new comers. There was an RV, a silver car and a motorcycle parked next to Otis truck.

They were only four, Barbie noticed. A woman with grey short hair, a blonde, an old man with a fishing hat and the guy of the motorcycle who had a crossbow.

"How is he?" the old man with the hat asked to Rick.

"He'll pull through," Lori replied. "Thanks to Hershel and his people."

"And Shane. Carl wouldn't have survived without him," Rick added and they all turned to Shane. Barbara noticed he had just shaved his head, and frowned. That was an odd random thing to do, she thought.

The old man then stepped up and hugged Rick and the woman with short hair hugged Lori.

"How it happened?" the old man asked.

"A stupid accident," Rick said with an apologetically smile. "Just a stupid accident."

But Barbie's eyes were fixed on the crossbow guy. He looked buffed and absolutely filthy, but unlike the rest of the group, he seemed like he always had been that way. He was a hillbilly through and through. He also was the only one who hadn't relaxed his posture and he was looking around meticulously, like taking in every single detail of the farm.

Yes, the girl decided, this guy would help her just fine.

...

Daryl felt a gaze fixed on him and when he looked up he met some girl's stare. She didn't look older than eighteen and was tall and slender. She was brunette, had big brown eyes and a serious look on her face. She looked away the second their eyes crossed and he saw her frown and her mouth twisted as she was upset. Something else about her caught his eye and was the ridiculous string of pearls she was wearing. Was she serious? Then he also noticed her riding boots. They were leather and even when they were a bit worn out, he knew they were high quality. He got it. He had come across people like her all his life. People who turned their noses on him like she just had done. She had a problem with him. But that was too goddamn bad, because if his group was staying, he was too and that stuck-up brat could suck it, as far as he was concerned.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Not what I thought

...

Otis funeral was a tense event. It was obvious only half of the people felt the loss and the other were doing their best to pretend. They didn't had a body or a way to do a tomb stone, so they just piled a large amount of big rocks, each of the presents letting a rock on the pile.

Barbara walked to the cart where they had put the rocks, took one with both hands and placed it softly on the pile as Hershel read from the bible, his firm deep voice, feeling ominous. After her, Blake stepped in, and placed a rock too. He then returned to his girlfriend side and took her hand firmly. Barbie knew he had resented the loss more than her, Brett or Isabelle, because he had bonded with Otis in the month they had knew him. He taught him how to hunt and track, which was weird at first because Barbie knew before everything happened, Blake barely had held a gun.

But to be honest, and she would never admit it to anyone, she already felt better. She had felt Otis loss yesterday, but the night had seemed to take those feelings away and now, she was just putting on a sad blank face because she couldn't admit that. That she had gotten it over already. No, she actually felt annoyed. The guy with the crossbow from Rick's group, Daryl, kept throwing nasty looks at her. At first she had thought he just looked at everything and everyone that way, but no. He was reserving a discrete glare for her. She didn't get it and she didn't like it. But she didn't want to piss him off. She needed his help after all.

"Praised be to him for the gift of our brother, Otis," Hershel continued closing the bible he had been reading. "For his spared years, for his abundance of character. Otis, who gave his life to save a child, now, more than ever, our most precious asset. We thank you God for the peace he enjoys in your embrace. He died as he lived in grace."

Hershel then turned.

"Shane," he told the cop, "will you speak for Otis?"

Barbie looked at the Shane and she detected in his face something else besides surprise. She wasn't sure what, but she felt it wasn't good.

Shane looked down, looking overwhelmed.

"I wouldn't know how. I'm sorry."

"You were last with him," Patricia told him, her voice choked by her grief. "Will you share his final moments?" She asked, her eyes begging him. "Please... I need to hear. I need to know his death had meaning."

The man nodded, looking overwhelmed by sadness.

"We were about done," he started speaking. "We were low in ammo and we're outnumbered by the ten. I was limping. It was bad. My ankle swollen up.

Shane made a pause.

"'We gotta save the boy' that's what he said," Shane continued looking around. "He gave me his backpack he shoved me ahead. Run, he said. I'll take the rear I'll cover you. And when I look back..." The look in his face said it all.

Everyone looked shocked and overwhelmed, but Barbara noticed, not everyone. The old man from Rick's group, Dale, he looked like he had realized something about Shane. Something bad.

Shane limped to the cart with rocks.

"If not for Otis," he continued. "I'll never make it out alive... and that goes for Carl too. It was Otis... he saved us both," he looked back at Patricia who nodded, sobbing even more.

Shane placed a rock on the pile and Barbara realized she didn't believe him. Somehow, she wasn't sure that's what had happened.

* * *

"How long this girl had been lost?" Hershel asked.

"Since day three," Rick replied.

He, Barbara, Brett, Hershel, Shane, Daryl and the blonde woman Andrea, they were around Otis truck's cap.

Then Maggie walked in, carrying a map.

"County Survey Map," she said with a smile, extending the map over the car. "It shows terrain and elevations."

Daryl took two rocks and placed them on the corners so it wouldn't roll up.

"It seems perfect. We can finally get this thing organized," Rick said surveying the map. "We can brush the whole area. Start searching in teams."

"Not you, not today," Hershel scolded him as he were a child. "You give three units of blood. You couldn't hike up three miles before passing out."

That morning, Rick had refused Barbie's offering and he had made all the transfusions for Carl.

The Hershel turned to Shane.

"And your ankle. Push it now and you'll be laid out a month. No good to anybody."

"Guess it's just me," Daryl said watching the map. "I'll go back to the creek. Work my way back from there."

"I can still be useful," Shane added. "Drive up to the interstate and see if Sophia wandered back."

"Alright. Tomorrow then," said Rick. "We start doing this right."

"That means we can't have our people out there with just knives," Shane quickly intervened. "They need the gun training we've been promising them."

"I prefer you're not carrying guns on my property," Hershel said but turned to Rick only. "We managed so far without turning this into an armed camp."

"With all due respect," Shane quickly spoke a little bit arrogant for Hershel's like. "If one of those things wanders to here..."

"We're guests here," Rick said firmly glancing at Shane before turning to Hershel. "This is your property and we will respect that." He then drew his gun from his belt and placed it on the car decidedly. Shane looked at him a bit exasperated before taking his gun, and placing it next to his.

"First things first. Set camp, find Sophia," Rick said looking at his group.

"I hate to be the one asking but somebody has to," Shane said quickly. "What happen if we find her and she's bit? Just to be clear, how we handle that?"

Until then Barbie hadn't had a problem with Shane. He had looked concerned for Carl and Rick, and had brought the supplies. But something about the funeral made her felt uneasy, and now the way he was questioning Rick, almost as if he was daring him, gave her a bad feeling. She liked him less and less with each passing minute.

Rick paused and his mouth set into a line before saying:

"You do what has to be done."

"And her mother? What would you tell her?" Maggie asked, looking a bit horrified by the idea. Barbie got it, though.

"The truth," Andrea replied.

"I'll gather and secure all the weapons," Shane said authoritatively. "Make sure no one's carrying till we're at a practice range off site," then he turned to Hershel and Rick. "I do request one rifleman on lookout. Dale's got experience."

Hershel looked at Shane unsure and then turned to Rick.

"Our people would feel safer," Rick pleaded his case, "less incline to carry a gun."

Hershel seemed to think about it and then nodded slowly.

"Thank you."

Being all decided, everyone walked away. Barbie saw Daryl walking away quickly and wanted to follow him, but she thought it was better if she waited. It would be harder for him to say no.

* * *

The next day, Barbara woke up very early. She didn't anyone finding out that she had left until she had. Luckily she didn't share room with anyone but her room was the farthest from the stairs. She would have to be very careful.

She put on her boots, a light pink shirt without much though, her necklace and ring and pull her hair on a ponytail. She washed her face and teeth, pull her hunting knife in her belt and then carefully a crossbow from her closet. Her dad had given it to her. They had found it in the way here but he hadn't a chance to teach her how to use it. She didn't even know he knew how, but now she had someone who will teach her... well, she hoped so.

It was heavy but she wasn't a strange to do exercise and some lifting so she would manage. She put it in her back and took a small cross-bag. It would be useful to carry a bottle of water and some food. She was about to leave, but something hung heavy in her. She wasn't sure about this guy, Daryl. She didn't even know him really. So before she left, she turned around to her dresser and pulled out a gun from between her clothes. Just in case, she though, as she placed it in the back of her jeans and hide it with her shirt.

Now it was the hard part. She had to avoid Hershel and Maggie. Those two woke up earlier than anybody else. She opened her door and found the corridor empty, she crossed it quickly but when she reached the stairs a voice she didn't expect her, stopped her.

"Where are you going with that?" She turned around startled and saw Isabelle, with a messy head and still in pajamas, watching her surprised. Barbie looked around but nobody else came out their room, and Isabelle had the decency to whisper.

"I'm going to look for that girl, Sophia," Barbie told her quickly in a whisper as well.

"And you're going all by yourself?" Her sister sounded worried. "You can't even use that!"

She pointed at the crossbow in her bag.

"Don't worry. I'll figure it out," she was going to turn to leave but her sister stopped her.

"You're not going alone, are you? Who are you sneaking with?"

"I'm not sneaking," Barbie told her annoyed but her sister raised her eyebrows, not believing her. "Fine, I'm going with that guy form Rick's group, Daryl."

Her sister sleepiness seemed to evaporate all together.

"The redneck?"

Barbie looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"That's an insult, Elle."

My sister huffed and rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. You shouldn't go with that guy. Have you seen him?"

Barbie knew what she was talking. She didn't trust him but Rick did and Rick was a good guy. If she didn't have a problem trusting Daryl she wouldn't either. Besides she would be careful around him, that's why she was carrying her gun, but couldn't say that around Elle or she wouldn't let her go.

"I know. I know he looks like a..."

"Criminal? Savage? Rapist?"

"Elle!"

"Oh my God! You can't say he doesn't!"

Barbie had enough and she risked been discovered. If Hershel, Patricia or Brett saw her, then she wouldn't leave the house as she had planned.

"Look, I know he doesn't look like someone you'll trust but Rick does, and he's a good man and a cop. And he can help me with this," she pointed at the crossbow in her back. "So please, trust me and don't tell anyone."

She then turned around but she caught what her sister said:

"Just be careful."

Barbie reached the stairs and went to the living room, staying close to the piano. She knew Hershel took his breakfast in the living room pretty early so she had to make sure he wasn't there already. If he was, he probably had heard her already.

The girl took a peak and saw the plates were there but not Hershel so she crossed the room quickly, entering the kitchen that was empty. Not wanting to push her luck, she went to the pantry, took a bottle of water a bar of granola and quickly left before someone came in.

Once outside, Barbara had to look out for Blake, who did the farm chores. It had been strange the first time, he had absolutely no idea what he was doing, but Otis helped him. Now, he would have to do them alone. She felt sorry for her boyfriend. He had been unusually quiet and depressed these past days, but if he saw him sneaking to the forest alone, he would try to stop and tell Hershel. She was about to surround the house when Daryl appeared, crossing the lawn from his camp. The girl barely had time to hide herself behind the column of the corner of the house. She pressed herself to the wall as the man strode by confidently.

When Daryl passed the house, Barbara looked out quickly and saw he had reached the porch when Rick stopped him. The cop must have been sitting there and Barbara sighed relieved she didn't try to left through the principal door.

Barbara took advantage they were talking and were distracted, to cross the distance quickly from where she was to the bay window on the side of the house. The construction allowed her a better hideout.

She poked her head out again and watched them talk. She couldn't hear a word they were saying, but she saw Rick looking not very sure of what Daryl was spatting aggressively. Maybe this wasn't a good idea after all, Barbara, thought. But she couldn't just go back. The world had changed and she just couldn't wait around for things to happen anymore.

She saw Daryl walking away and she then waited for Rick to return to the house or to the porch at least. But in that moment Hershel walked out with a rolled map and a stick and the girl cursed. She wouldn't be able to follow Daryl right away. She would have to surround the house through the forest first. But as if they had heard her, they started walking to the right side of the house instead following Daryl's path. The girl pressed herself to the bay window because if they turned around they would see her any moment now. So she had to be fast. Now or never. She surrounded the bay window that hid her right when they went around the house going to the back where she had been. Once they were out of sight, she couldn't wait anymore and she just ran, following Daryl quickly.

* * *

Daryl felt someone following him through the forest but he didn't though it was that much important. First of all, it wasn't a walker. And second, for its steps, it didn't sound like someone with a lot of weight on them. But after a while he became annoyed.

He stopped in the middle of the forest and turned, his crossbow raised, ready to shoot but he knew if wouldn't be necessary, it was more to scare whoever it was.

"I know you're out there! Come out now or I'll shoot you!" He snapped aggressively.

He was actually surprised to see the stuck up girl from the farm, but he dissimulated. He was even more surprised to see her carrying a crossbow and of course, pearls in place.

"Hey! Don't shoot. It's just me," the girl said lifting her hands in the air and approaching carefully because he was pointing at her with his crossbow. He put it down annoyed and glared at her.

"Why are you following me?" He demanded.

The girl didn't let his aggressiveness to get her, even when her heart started pumping a little faster. She forced herself to smile at him.

"I'm Barbie," she said as friendly as she was able but Daryl just buffed, and looked at her from head to toe in derisive way.

"Figures."

She was sure that answer somehow was meant as an insult but she let it pass. Her smile faltered but she still forced it in place.

"Why are you following me?" he snapped again and she raised an eyebrow.

"I wanna help you. You're looking for Sophia, right?"

"I don't need help... or dead weight," and then he turned and kept walking, his crossbow raised again.

Slowly Barbara's fear started to wash away followed by annoyance.

"You don't know me and I'm not dead weight, thank you very much. I can defend myself fine."

His answer was just a snort.

"Why don't you think I'm not capable?" She challenged him, upset. "Because I'm a girl?"

"No, I know capable girls and you sure are not one of them," he pointed out derisively, without even turning.

"I can track and hunt," she told him, hoping that would give her some credit but he just snore and glance at her with a mean smirk. Actually Daryl had almost started laughing at that.

"Nah."

"My father taught me!" The girl replied now indignantly.

"What? To hunt pheasants and foxes with a cavalry behind?" Daryl mocked her and she glared at him.

"Funny," she snapped icily. "Very original too."

She followed him then silently and weighing on the situation. With that joke Daryl made clear what he thought of her, a spoiled rich girl, so she would have to really show him if he was going to take her seriously, without letting him get to her. She could feel her blood boiling but she had to calm down. She also knew from experience that you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar, especially if you knew a good technique.

Barbie swallowed, taking a deep breath, making her voice as friendly as possible.

"So, did you know Rick before all this?" She asked him trying to make a bit of chitchat, but the man seemed to not hear her. "Daryl?"

She heard him sighed before answering in a curtly way.

"Nah. I met him in my way to Atlanta, when they said it was a safe zone."

"So you're not from Atlanta?"

"No."

And then Barbie was surprised when he asked: "You did?"

"Yes, I lived in..." she stopped mid-sentence because for his insults she knew exactly what was coming once she told him.

Daryl actually turned his head to look at her with a raised eyebrow the corner of his mouth lightly rising up. It was like he was almost challenging her.

"...in Tuxedo Parks," she said firmly and his smirk widened. But it was a mean one.

"Figures."

She knew it wasn't probably the best idea, but she had had enough.

"Okay, stop it," she snapped at him and he actually looked at her a bit surprised.

"Stop what?"

"This mockery. Yes, my dad had money before. So what? I made it, you know. I wasn't bitching and complaining the whole time. I'm not the spoiled kid you think I am."

They had stopped now. Barbara glaring at the man who was at least one foot taller than her, her eyes shining with anger and Daryl slightly surprised at her outburst. He could easily overpower her, but still she stood her ground, without looking a bit scared. He was actually impressed, but his face remained blank. She didn't need to know any of that.

"You know, tracking is about not making noise," he said, apparently ignoring what she had said.

Barbie glared at him.

"We're tracking a girl not a rabbit," she said to him and then she walked passed him. "Though with your voice she probably is going to run scared, thinking it's a walker."

Daryl glared at her back.

"Funny," he grumbled.

They kept going in silence. Barbie too angry to try and make small talk again and Daryl analyzing his temporary companion. He had to admit she had an idea of what tracking was and she looked confident walking through the woods. But she also looked like she had spent most of her time in malls and heels. He didn't understand how both were possible.

Daryl stopped her then, by blocking her path with his arm and when she looked up at him questioningly, he just pointed ahead. When the girl peeked out of the trees she saw three walkers roaming around. He put a finger on his lips and she nodded, taking out her hunting knife, ready to attack. Daryl lifted his crossbow and walked quickly, firing a bow in the skull of one. The girl was about to follow him but then a strong arm closed around her neck and pulled her back. The girl felt the growl and foul smell behind her and knew it was a walker. It had grabbed her through the space between two trees and left her pined to the tree, his mouth just inches away from her neck. She screamed out of instinct and tried to break free, starting to panic.

Daryl turned around hoping the worst and saw the girl screaming, trying in vain to break free. The tree and crossbow in her back actually helping her to stay away but the walker's jaws were getting dangerously close to her throat.

That fraction of distraction costed him. The two walkers launched at him at the same time. He kicked one away and threw it in its back but the other knocked his bow down, and Daryl raised his arms, holding its mouth away from his face.

Barbara watched Daryl struggling and she understood he wasn't going to help her. He couldn't. But a voice in her head, sounding a lot like her father's, scolded her. She shouldn't need his help. She didn't. The girl heard her dad's voice clearly. Calm down, take a breath and quickly evaluate your situation. The walker was surprisingly strong and even when the tree offered protection, it also was on her way. She couldn't stab the walker without getting bit, and she couldn't reach her gun without letting go of her knife, so there was only one solution. She would have to step as further from the tree as she could, turned around and stabbed him before he could bite her. She would only have a few seconds.

Barbara took a deep breath and forced her hand that was stopping the walker's arm from chocking her away from her. She put her whole weight on it and she could move a couple inches forcing the face of the walker further between the trees and closer to her face. She then barely turned to see where to aim and raised her knife, driving it through his eye. Blood ran down her arm and nape, splatting on the side of her face and then the walker hung down dead, his arm finally releasing her.

Daryl heard her screams stopping and panicked because he couldn't turn to see what was going on. So he managed to kick the walker down and while he was holding it down, Daryl took out his knife and drove it through the walker's forehead. He had barely straightened up when the other walker came from behind, grabbing him. He couldn't even turn when the growls were cut short and the corpse fell down next to him, immobile.

He quickly looked up and saw Barbie white as a ghost, her hands shaking but her eyes blazing. Daryl saw her neck covered in blood and he felt a surge of panic, his heart pumping as crazy. He stood up quickly, stepping to her and brushing her hair to the side to see her neck. It wasn't her blood.

"He didn't get me," she said with a strained voice looking up to him. He grunted and noticing how close he was, he stepped away. His heart was still beating like crazy and he hated to admit that he was scared for her a second there. So he just went and picked up his crossbow and then the bow that was still on the third walker's skull, trying to control his breathing before she noticed it.

"Are you hurt?" Daryl asked her, returning to her. Barbara was still in the same position. She hadn't even put her knife away but she was staring at him with slightly unfocused eyes. She shook her head still looking intently and she finally seemed to snap out of that state. She let the knife fell to the ground and then she quickly took the crossbow from her back, dropping it on the floor.

"I think the crossbow cut me in the back," she said starting to panic because the walker blood was soaking the back of her shirt. Daryl panic came back too and he quickly stepped behind her. The girl stood still, fearing the worst.

Barbara did have a cut, but it wasn't too deep and it was on her shoulder plate away from the walker's blood stain by an inch.

"You have one but it's small and the blood didn't get it," Daryl quickly told her and she sighed. When he had told her he was hurt she had almost fainted but then a relief wave washed her making her lightheaded. She sighed in relief almost laughing, and she was suddenly in such a good mood. Avoiding death could do that sometimes.

She turned around to see Daryl and before he could put a blank mask on she noticed the worry and relief in his face.

Barbie smirked at him.

"So, you can thank me now," she told him and he looked at her confused.

"Thank you?"

"I just saved your life," the girl reminded him with a cocky smile taking off her cross-bag, dropping it in the floor as well. "And prove I can take care of myself."

Daryl was about to reply, to erase that annoying smirk, when she suddenly pulled off her shirt.

"What are you doing?" He snapped, stepping back, but she had a white halter underneath the other.

"Can you help me?" Barbie asked him ignoring him, pulling out a Band-Aid from her bag and handing it to him. She couldn't risk an infection because then Hershel would know she had left.

Daryl took it and she turned around. The walker's blood had stained the white shirt too but the shirt didn't cover the upper part of her back so it wasn't close to the wound. He sighed placing the Band-Aid quickly, as if touching her would burnt his skin. When he was done he quickly stepped back, looking away.

Barbie wiped her hands in her pink shirt and then tied it around her hips. Then she put her bag on, put her knife on its sheath, and picked crossbow from the floor.

"You have to be more careful," Daryl scolded, surprising her and she turned around frowning. "I thought you say you knew how to hunt."

"You didn't see it coming either," the girl reminding him raising her eyebrows. Daryl couldn't answer so he just glared at her and walked away grumbling. Barbie looked at him amused, actually holding back a chuckle and followed him.

The girl carried the crossbow now in her hands because her back actually ached for being pressed against it and the tree. Daryl glanced at her and then at the crossbow.

"That's not a toy, you know. Why don't you use it?" He asked her.

"I don't know how," the girl replied honestly. "My dad found it but... he never showed me how."

"That guy, Hershel, uses crossbows?"

"He's not my dad. He's my uncle," Barbie responded a little bit strained, looking away.

Daryl glanced at her. He noticed her jaw tightly closed so he didn't ask. It wasn't his business anyway. The girl cleared her throat.

"But I'm not sure if my dad knew how, anyway. We never used crossbows while hunting," the girl shrugged. Daryl gave her a smirk.

"So you really hunted huh?"

This time he wasn't mocking her just teasing so Barbara just gave him a look and lifted her chin.

"I did. Birds mostly. He once tried to make me hunt a deer but I hadn't heart to kill him... I did though. After everything happened... I had to. And after we came here, I went with Otis sometimes."

Daryl looked at her.

"The guy who died?"

She nodded.

"I'm sorry," he offered and she smiled lightly. Wow, she had judged this guy big time. Well, his attitude certainly didn't help.

"It's okay."

"So... if you don't know how to use it, why did you bring it?" Daryl asked her then slyly, and when she looked at him, he had his eyebrows rose.

"Fine. I was hoping that you may... want to help me."

"Hum, I have to look for Sophia. I don't have time to give you lessons or some shit."

His tone was snappy but she didn't take it personally this time.

"I'm not saying right now. But what about later, at camp?" She asked him with the friendliest sweetest smile she could pull off.

Daryl just huffed and scratched his stubble, glancing at her.

"What would I get?"

His question took her by surprise. She frowned lightly. She had thought he was different from what she had expected but maybe not.

"Dunno. What do you want?" Her cold tone and expression made him angry. She thought he wanted to take advantage of her.

"Not that!" He spat, blushing lightly and he stopped, facing her.

Barbara squinted still wary, but his reaction actually had soothed her.

"Why not?"

"Are you serious?" He said angrily.

"What? You're a guy. Most of them it's what they want, consent or not."

That only seemed to anger him more.

"Well, I'm not like that! Do you hear me? Why you came here if you though I could hurt you anyway?" He yelled at her and the stomped pass her.

Barbie sighed. She had misunderstood him and now he was really pissed off. She had taken one step forward and seemed like five backwards.

"Like I said I can defend myself," she responded lightly following him but he didn't look at her.

The girl sighed again.

"I don't expect you to try and take advantage of me, Daryl," she told him, trying to soothe him.

"No? Then what was that shit?" He demanded angrily.

"Well, I didn't expect you to ask me for something..."

"Why not? Before all this shit people paid for stuff right?"

She shook her head exasperated.

"Fine. What do you want?"

"For you to shut up."

Barbie glared at him, getting as angry but she needed to fix this. She took a deep breath, swallowing hard her pride.

"I'm sorry I misjudge you, okay. But I didn't know you," she snapped at him and just kept going. He didn't say anything for a while and she didn't push it.

After a while Daryl glanced at Barbara and saw she was carrying the crossbow in one hand, the weapon pointing at the ground. He turned his head and kept his look straight ahead.

"You have to put the crossbow at shoulders length," his instruction surprised the girl who stopped.

"What?"

Daryl sighed, annoyed he had caved in but turned to her.

"The crossbow. One hand in the trigger the other here," he patted the fore-grip of his own. The girl frowned lightly but quickly raised the crossbow as he had told her. Daryl stepped to her and rose the crossbow lightly to the correct position.

"There," he said and then moved a little lever to the left. "That's your safety trigger, now it's off. Have you shot a rifle before?"

The girl nodded and Daryl patted the little scope.

"Not exactly the same but try to do it as if it where one. Got it?"

Barbie nodded again this time smiling and Daryl just grunted.

"It's that all?" The girl asked him teasingly and he squinted at her.

"That's just the basics, now go ahead. Don't wanna you shooting me in the back by accident."

Barbie just rolled her eyes and walked ahead.

* * *

Like fifteen minutes later they found a clear and a house in it. It was big but looked completely abandoned. Even the painting was washed off.

Both Barbie and Daryl put the crossbows down and she turned to him.

"Do you think Sophia...?"

"It's possible, let's go," he nodded his head and she followed him. When they reached the porch he turned to her.

"Put the safety on that and grab your knife," he instructed her. Barbie frowned.

"Why?"

He sighed reaching for her crossbow himself and putting the safety on.

"Because you have never fired one and I don't wanna you to hit me or not hit the walker and get bit."

Barbara nodded. He was right after all. And even when she was still aching, she hung the crossbow in her back again. Daryl turned then.

"I'll go first. Ready?"

"Wait, I have this," and reaching behind her, she drew the gun out of her jeans. Daryl looked at her surprised and then he became angry again. One, because he hadn't noticed the damned gun and two because if she had hid it from him it only meant she had planned to use it on him.

"You've carrying that the whole time?" He spat angry.

"Yes, in case..."

"In case you had to use it on me," he said angrily.

Barbie nodded.

"I didn't know you, okay. I just knew you could knock me out easily if you want to. I was being cautious," she told him matter-of-factly and he hated to admit she was right. He would had done the same.

"But I trust you, you know."

"Really?" He buffed.

"Well, a little bit anyway."

He glared at her and the girl rolled her eyes.

"Come on, we haven't all day. Or do you want me to go first?"

Still glaring at her, Daryl rose his crossbow and kicked opened the doors. Barbie was right next to him, her gun up.

The house was practically empty and there was dust settled everywhere. Daryl moved to the first room to his right as Barbie went to the room in front of it. Both check them but there were empty, without sign of someone living there or a walker.

Barbie turned and Daryl looked at her. She shook her head and he nodded. Then signaled ahead with his head to keep going. She followed him to the back of the house where the back door was wide open. She looked at Daryl and she walked there as he checked the room next to it. The back yard was empty. There was just some trash between the overgrown grass but not a sign that someone had gone through there.

She looked at Daryl who also shook his head and then continued to the last room, the kitchen. He entered first, sweeping the area quickly but there was nothing. There was a back room in there and Daryl went to it quickly but it was empty as well. And then he noticed the trash can, a smell catching his attention. He bent and picked an opened sardine can. The girl put her gun down and looked at him questioningly.

"It was opened recently," he told her in a whisper and then his eyes seemed to catch something. She quickly turned where he was looking and saw the pantry door opened.

The girl quickly went there, Daryl almost her shadow and pulled it open.

Both stepped back, but it was empty. There were some shelves with jars on them and most important a blanket and a pillow on the floor.

Barbara turned so quickly that her neck hurt.

"She was here," she muttered and he gave her a grunt.

"Maybe."

Both left through the back door and before Barbie could take a better look Daryl shout at the top of his lungs:

"SOPHIA!" It startled the living lights out o her but she smiled. If he was shouting then he believed she had been there. And probably was still around. "SOPHIA!"

"SOPHIA!" She shout too, looking around for movement, a trace, something.

Barbie turned around to Daryl and she found him a couple yards away crouching while looking at something. She approached him quickly.

"You found something? A trace?"

"No."

She looked at what he was looking. There was rickety bush with two big pretty white flowers in it. She frowned confused.

"A flower?"

"No, it's a 'mind-your-own-damn-business'," he replied grumpily and she rolled her eyes. She put her gun away and pulled out her knife, cutting one of them carefully before passing it to him.

"Here. There you go. And I won't ask," she said matter-of-factly before turning around and walking to the side of the house.

Daryl stared at her back, frowning but found himself smiling slowly. He didn't even notice it.

* * *

The flower was now on an empty bottle of water, been carried on Barbara's bag so Daryl wouldn't crush her. Then sun was setting and they were coming back. The girl didn't admit it, specially to Daryl, but she was thoroughly exhausted. She was even dragging her feet. She was sure Daryl noticed but he didn't say anything. He could even walk away but he didn't. He was going at her pace. Maybe he was not that big of an asshole after all. True, he had teased her when she pulled out a bottle of water and an energetic bar from her bag, but she hadn't eaten anything the whole day. It was a miracle she hadn't faint yet. She thanked those diets she had forced herself to do to fit some dress back in high school. Besides Barbie just shrugged at his teasing and offered him half bar and the rest of the bottle. He finished all almost in one go.

"I'm guessing if you tried to sneak upon me, Hershel doesn't know where you are," Daryl told her after a while.

"Hum... yeah. And I wanted to keep it that way, if you don't mind," Barbie replied stumbling a little. Daryl glanced at her.

"You're not fainting on me, are you?"

"I'm fine."

Daryl looked ahead. He could be a dick about it and mocked her or just be empathetic. He was also tired, but he was used to it. In fact, he was surprised she hadn't complained or faint.

"It's hard. The terrain is not regular and the crossbow is heavy," he responded and Barbie smiled at that.

"So you're not going to give me a hard time for being tired?"

Daryl shrugged.

"You haven't complain and you lasted this far. I'm tired too, but I'm used to."

Barbie nodded, too tired to be sarcastic in a way he wouldn't get pissed.

When they approached the end of the forest and the farm was visible through the trees, they stopped. Barbara handled him the bottle with the flower and he took it squinting at her, like daring her to say something.

The girl raised her hands.

"Not asking. But you have to go first."

Daryl grunted and turned to left.

"Daryl," she called her and he stopped looking at her. "Can I come back with you tomorrow?"

"I thought you didn't ask first?" He quipped and she raised her eyebrow, a light smile on her lips showing up. The man shrugged.

"If you can walk tomorrow," he smirked at her and left. She glared at him, but followed him some steps behind, looking around, checking no one would notice her.

She waited behind a tree and watched him walking to the RV. She was actually curious about the flower. She had said she wouldn't ask but that didn't meant she couldn't take a peek. She ran to the RV, as fast as her exhausted legs allowed her and stayed hidden in the side where they wouldn't spot her from the house or the rest of the camp.

She approached an open window and saw Carol, the woman with the short hair next to it. She also saw a bit of dirty plaid shirt so she pressed herself to the side of the RV under the window. She couldn't look to the inside or Daryl would saw her. He was standing in front of Carol, facing the windows, but they were opened and she could hear them.

"A flower?" The woman asked.

"Is a Cherokee Rose," Daryl said, his voice calm and almost gentle. "The story is that when American soldiers were moving the Indians off their lands they let a trail of tears. The Cherokee mothers were grieving and crying so much because they were losing their little ones on the way; exposure, decease, starvation... a lot of them just disappear. So the elders they, huh, send a prayer; asked for a sign to uplift the spirits of the mothers, give them strength, hope. And they said this rose started to grow right out of the mothers' tears."

There was a pause.

"I'm not fool enough to think there's any flowers blooming for my brother," Daryl continued. "But huh, I believe this one... blooms for your little girl."

If he said something else, Barbie didn't hear it. She quickly surrounded the RV, and hid by the tents then, she fled to the back of the house. She saw Blake far away, working but he didn't saw her. She heard cars in the driveway so she went through the back door quickly. She also heard Maggie coming in and she barely had time to go upstairs after she did, without Hershel seen her, who just entered the house in that moment. Only after she was safely inside her room, she thought about what she had heard.

Daryl had proved her that he was trust worthy, but now she also believed he was a good man. Like Rick. He was caring so much for that girl, more than anyone else in his group, and she decided that she would help him find her. She and Hershel had saved Carl, so why couldn't do the same and find Sophia?

She took off the crossbow and put it inside her closet. Then she went to the bathroom and washed her hands thoroughly. The sight of blood swirling down the drain would have upset her before, but not anymore. Once her hands were clean she hid her gun with her clothes and took her knife, leaving it on her nightstand.

As she showered, her stomach grumbled hard. She thought it was lucky she had found some candy in a store while going on a run with Maggie and kept it to herself. She could have her fill before dinner.

* * *

As Daryl lay on his tent devouring some beef jerky and crackers, he thought about the day and Barbara. She had surprised him more in just a day than a lot of people during his whole life. He didn't know what to think when she started following him. He had snapped at her and insulted her, and she hadn't left him. True, she had wanted him to teach her how to use the crossbow the whole time and had a gun on her, but still she didn't threat him. She didn't complain. She didn't insult him like he did to her. She even had admitted she had misjudged him, and if he was honest, he had misjudged her just as much. He had thought she looked down on him because of his obvious background but she didn't seemed to mind. He had thought she had depended on other people to last this much, when others hadn't, but she proved him she could survive. She could fight. And he liked that. Very much. That fire when she snapped at him, not letting him belittle her and when she had killed those walkers. She didn't wait for him to save her. And she did save him.

He didn't think Barbara would go with him the next day. He was pretty sure she would be exhausted and wouldn't be up as early as today... but he kinda wished she would come. He could even leave a little bit later... wait for her.

Maybe.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Frustrated Plans

...

There was no way in hell he was waiting for Barbara, Daryl thought as he woke up earlier with the intention to leave without her. After a weird dream he had no intention to revisit, he realized the situation may be innocent but people wouldn't look it at that way. He alone in the woods with that girl? Hell, even she had assumed he would try and take advantage, that's why she had carried the gun. True, Barbara had said she trusted him now, but he was sure as hell Hershel wouldn't if Barbara told him she wanted to go to the woods alone with him so she could learn how to use a crossbow and look for Sophia. Hell, he could already picture the man with a rifle chasing him away. Hershel may have not been Barbara's father, but she was a child, a teenager. And Daryl didn't want to be the cause of Hershel throwing them away. No, thanks. He would stay away from Barbara like the plague.

Rick gathered Shane, Daryl, Andrea and T-Dog to organize the search parties for Sophia. He had extended the map on the cap of the truck when Blake and Brett approached them.

"We wanna help," Blake told Rick with his hands on his pockets. "We know the area pretty well."

"Hershel's okay with that?" Rick asked him and the guys nodded.

"Yeah, he said we should ask you," Brett replied.

Rick nodded.

"Alright then. Thanks."

* * *

Barbara didn't wake up until noon and when she realized, she was pissed. Not only because it was too late to sneak out to the woods, but because Daryl had been right. She couldn't even wake up on time. She stood up and groaned. Her legs, back, and shoulders were killing her. Despite that, she wanted to go out and keep learning. She wondered if by any chance Daryl had delayed his searching but she doubted it and she didn't know where direction he had gone anyway.

She went down the stairs feeling all stiff and she bumped into her sister.

"Well, good morning, sleepy head," the blonde told her sister with a smile.

"Hi," Barbie replied, walking ahead of her, lightly limping.

"What's wrong with you?" Isabelle asked frowning worried. Barbie turned to look at her and made a face.

"I'm hurting all over. I feel so beat up," she said rubbing the sore muscles in her legs.

Barbie saw Isabelle's worry turning into anger.

"Did he do...?"

"No, and stop it. He's nothing like that."

Elle raised up her eyebrows.

"You have spent only one day with him."

"Still I know now for sure he's a good guy. I even trust him."

Elle squinted and looked at her as if Barbie was turning green.

"What?" She asked annoyed.

"You don't like him, do you?"

Barbie opened her eyes surprised and she blushed lightly.

"What? No!"

Elle gave her a look and Barbie glared at her sister.

"Don't look at me like that. No. He's just a nice guy who doesn't show it. That's all."

Elle nodded but didn't look that much convince.

"Well, fine. They left already you know."

"I figure."

"And they took Brett and Blake with them."

Barbie sighed.

"Really?"

"Yep. So if you're going to sneak with him again..."

"I'm not sneaking with anybody."

The blonde shrugged.

"I just think you should know."

Barbie nodded and smiled at her.

"Thank you."

"Sure."

...

Barbara didn't sneak out though. She couldn't. She had breakfast and when she had tried to go and get her crossbow, Patricia asked her to help wash some clothes and she couldn't say no. So she spent the afternoon washing and hanging clothes to dry. Then Lori and Carol came by the house an offered to make dinner. Patricia and Isabelle helped them, as Maggie set the table and Barbie snuck out to the porch, where she got comfortable in the swing and started reading... until a shot rang across the farm.

Barbie stood up, the book falling with a thump, and ran to the RV from where the sound of the shot had come from. Her heart was beating so hard it felt like it could pop at any second. Brett was out there, and Blake and...

She reached the RV where Dale and Andrea were. Andrea was on top of it and had a riffle. So she was the one who had shot. But what? Who? The girl didn't ask. She just ran towards the group of men gathered ahead, praying it wasn't serious. That it hadn't been her brother. She reached them then and there was Glenn, T-Dog, Rick and Shane leaning over Daryl.

Her heart dropped to her knees when she saw the blood.

"What happened?" Her voice a little bit higher.

"He was shot in the head," Rick told her and she examined him quickly, her hands shaken but it was just a flesh wound. It had just grazed his head.

"It's just superficial. Let's get him in the house," she told them and they all started to walk back to the house.

Andrea and Dale joined them running.

"Oh my God! Oh my God! Is he dead?" Andrea asked sobbing.

"It just grazed his head. He's unconscious," Barbie told her, her voice sounding too far. She could hear her heart beatings ringing in her head as she watched Daryl being dragged to the house.

"But look at him!" Glenn said panicking. "What the hell happened? He's wearing ears!"

The girl then noticed in fact Daryl was wearing a 'necklace' made of walkers' ears. What the hell?

Rick looked up and saw Hershel looking at them, not too pleased. Then he ripped the ears off Daryl's neck and shoved them in his shirt.

"Let's keep that to ourselves."

"Guys," T-Dog called and they all turned, stopping. He was holding a dirty rag doll. "Isn't this Sophia's?"

...

Daryl hadn't only been shot in the head but he had also stabbed himself with one of his arrows and was dehydrated.

They had to carry him to the only bedroom left on the first floor and laid him over a towel on the bed. As Rick and Shane backed off. Barbie started undoing his shirt and noticed he had ripped it and tied tightly against his wound to stop the blood somehow. She opened the shirt and leaned over, examining the wound. He would need stitches, but it had only pierced muscle. She slid her fingers quickly and gently, checking for other injuries and she discovered multiple bruises but nothing that wouldn't heal. What had happened to him?

Just then Hershel walked in and looked at her with a strange look. She straightened up.

"He has another wound. It's deep but it didn't hit anything important and there's no internal bleeding. It would need stitches though. And the head it's just a graze but..."

"Thank you, Barbie. Why don't you wait outside?" Hershel asked her as he examined Daryl and Patricia came in with his tools. The girl stood there, confused for a minute.

"What?"

"Yes, I got this. Wait outside, please." This time he didn't ask her, he just dismissed her. She didn't understand why since she always helped him and he never had stopped her, but encouraged her. She looked over at Daryl as Hershel finished removing his shirt and left the room. Still, she caught a glimpse at his back when they rolled him on his side. There was glaring scars across it. She paused outside it just overwhelmed by all that had happened. Daryl shot, Hershel dismissing her and Daryl's scars. They look old and she knew they weren't recent. They couldn't be. He had been probably abused as a child or teen or something. And then she got it. Why that attitude of 'go and eff yourself'.

But then the worry about Daryl passed and she had to stop thinking about him as a defenseless kid because it sickened her. The girl instead thought about Hershel and his attitude. What was all about? After he had given Barbara her place before, during and after Carl's surgery. He had given her credit and now she just threw her out as some kid? He wasn't even her father! She didn't know why, maybe it was just the emotions combined, but she felt so damned angry at Hershel.

* * *

Barbara saw Daryl once he was awake as Hershel parched his head. She had brought him some water but couldn't say anything because Rick and Shane were there, and Hershel was bandaging his head. She did noticed, thought, the way Daryl pulled up the covers, turning as much as he could, almost lying flat on the bed so she wouldn't see his back.

The girl handled him the glass and he took with his free hand.

"Thank you," he said taking the water and she nodded, smiling softly. She looked up and saw Hershel looking at her. Barbie straightened up, glaring at him and left the room quickly.

Daryl saw her tight jaw and angry face directed at Hershel but he said nothing. It was none of his business. He was just worried about her seeing his back. When he was woken up he was already shirtless and Hershel had been stitching him up. He didn't saw Barbara in the room but she may have been before. He wanted to ask Hershel but couldn't. He would then ask why he cared that she had seen them.

* * *

To say that dinner was awkward was an understatement. It seemed like everybody was mad with everybody.

On the dining table were Hershel, Patricia, Brett, Rick, and everybody else except for Barbara, Maggie, Blake, Glenn and Isabelle. They had been delegated to the kids table, apparently. They all ate in uncomfortable silence .

Blake was mad at Barbie, or so she thought. And exchanging glances with Elle confirmed that her sister also thought that too, but she wasn't sure why and right now she didn't care much. She was mad at Hershel.

Suddenly Glenn turned around and addressed the other table.

"Does anybody know how to play guitar?" He asked trying to break the horrible awkward silence with a tentative smile. "Cause Dale has one on the RV."

Nobody answered right away, but then Patricia said sadly, looking down:

"Otis did."

Hershel nodded, looking at her sympathetically, placing a hand on hers briefly.

"Yes, and he was very good at it," he agreed.

Glenn smile faded and he turned around uncomfortable. The awkward silence continued. Barbie found oddly funny the guy's expression. She smiled lightly and then forced her to stop before someone would see it. But Blake did and he didn't like it.

* * *

Barbara got an idea of how to talk with Daryl and planned on taking him dinner. She wanted to explain and make sure he knew she did want to learn and take whatever he could teach her seriously. And after hearing how he had been thrown out of a horse, rolled down a hill and been stabbed by an arrow and still managed to find the doll, kill some walkers and return to the farm only to be shot and walked out of all alive, she was sure she had found the perfect teacher. She could learn from Daryl how to survive and protect her family.

When they all finished eating she went to serve Daryl some food but Carol had already a tray ready and went to his room. The girl sighed, thinking maybe she just should give up for today and try to find him tomorrow. He couldn't move that much anyway.

Barbara went to her room after dinner to brush her teeth. When she exited the bathroom, she saw the candy bar packet peeking from the nightstand drawer and she smiled. She had an idea.

* * *

Someone knocked on his door and when Daryl lifted his head, he saw Barbara coming in, and closing the door behind her.

"Hey."

"What are you doing here?" He snapped a little, turning to look at her, his hands gripping quickly the covers and pulling them up as much as he could. She remembered his scars and understood that he didn't want her to see them, so she looked away and went to the other side of the bed so she would face his front and not his back. She sat on the chair next to the bed and smiled at him softly.

"How are you feeling?"

He shrugged.

"Been better."

"Sure. You scared me a bit there for a moment."

He raised his eyebrows lightly.

"Good thing Andrea's aim is not very good," Barbie quipped and he smirked lightly.

"Yeah. I'm glad too."

"I heard you stole Nelly."

He heard the amusement in her voice.

"Yeah. That horse almost kills me so stop smiling," he huffed but he didn't mean it and kept smirking. The girl just chuckled. "You shoulda told me, warn me or something."

"You should've told me you were planning to steal a horse."

He grunted but smiled at his own shamelessness.

"You never came."

"You missed me?" Barbie teased her and he glared at her.

"You're too annoying to be missed."

She raised an eyebrow to him and smiled.

"To be honest I overslept a bit. I was a little beaten up," she admitted.

"Shoulda known," he smirked lightly.

"And I tried to sneak out but my brother was out there and Patricia wouldn't leave me alone so..."

"Hum."

So that was why, Daryl thought. He hadn't wanted to admit it, but he had been a little upset when she hadn't showed up. He almost expected her to try and sneak upon him like the day before but she didn't. Knowing she hadn't be able to, somehow made him feel better.

"But I do want to learn. I really do."

Daryl looked at her, raising an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"You're going to do what I tell you?"

"If it's reasonable."

Daryl smiled amused.

"You're not going to be a good student, are you?"

"Maybe, maybe not," the girl smirked at him.

Daryl scratched his stubble.

"That's why you were angry with Hershel? Because you couldn't sneak out?" He asked her and Barbie's smile faded. The girl frowned upset.

"No. I'm mad at him because he threw me out when they bring you here after you were shot."

That took Daryl by surprise but he didn't let him show it. She couldn't care that much for him already, could she?

"Didn't realize me being shot bring you so much joy," Daryl replied making a gesture and the girl smirked, shaking her head.

"I wanted to help, you silly. I could have fixed your head while he stitched you up but he just dismissed me as some child."

He was about to say she was a child but he was hurt and couldn't defend himself if she got pissed. So he tried to change the topic a little.

"Were you a voluntary in a hospital or something before?"

Barbie raised an eyebrow. She looked a bit offended too.

"I was a med student when everything happened. I was just two years away from my residency."

Daryl raised his eyebrows surprised.

"I thought you were like sixteen or something."

Barbie twisted her mouth annoyed.

"Yeah, I looked like a child but I'm twenty two."

Daryl huffed, rolling his eyes.

"Yeah, you're so much older."

"Shut up."

Daryl hated himself for it but he felt so relieved knowing she was an adult. A very young adult but nevertheless...

"Here," Barbara surprised him by pulling out a Milky Way bar and handling it to him.

"What's this?" He asked confused.

"This is the best candy bar ever."

He gave her a look.

"I meant what for?"

"It's the payment for the classes," the girl said matter-of-factly.

"I haven't taught you anything yet," he replied shrugging.

"No, but you will."

"So that's the only thing I get?"

"Hey, they're pretty rare with the apocalypse going on, you know. So think about it as a Cuban cigar," Barbie responded lifting her chin and he smiled.

"Thanks, though I would prefer the cigar."

"Well you shouldn't. Smoking it's bad."

"Spare me the talk," he kept smirking but she noticed the drowsiness in his eyes. She should leave and let him rest.

She stood up and he frowned.

"I should let you sleep. You look terrible," she scrunch up her nose but smiled.

"Thanks."

She chuckled and made her way to the door.

"Tomorrow, before noon" he told before she left and she turned to him confused.

"What?"

"I'm gonna train you tomorrow before noon. If you still want to."

"I do but you can't walk."

"Hell I can."

Barbara gave him a look.

"Daryl, you were shot and stabbed... and thrown off a horse. You could pop open your stitches. You can just walk around."

"I'm not. You're also bringing a chair for me to sit and relax. And you can check that I'm not hurting myself, can't you Doc?"

She squinted at him.

"Of course."

"So it's settled. Tomorrow before noon. Don't over sleep."

She shook her head but smiled.

"Good night, Daryl."

"Night," he mumbled, turning around. He heard the door opening and then closing. He then looked up to where she had been before turning again and watched the chocolate bar in his hand. He let it on the night stand, thinking about Barbara. She just kept surprising him. But he liked her determination. She wasn't asking him to protect her. She wanted to do it herself. She didn't want to depend on others or just in the abilities she already had. And Daryl liked and respected that. A lot.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Hitting the Mark

...

Next morning Barbara was surprised when she didn't found Daryl in the guest room. But remembering how he was, he had probably left on his own despite his injuries. The girl shook her head at his stubbornness and went to the kitchen to eat something. There was plain scrambled eggs grits, and fruit. She served herself a plate of eggs with grits, peaches and an apple and went to the dining room where Hershel had been finishing his breakfast.

"Morning," he greeted her, eating the rest of his fruit.

She was still upset with him but not as much as yesterday.

"Morning," she replied not as affectionate as usual. She didn't say anything else and just ate in silence, feeling Hershel's eyes on her.

"So you're still mad at me huh?"

Hershel told her but he wasn't upset, he was even smiling. Barbie looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes. You haven't apologized."

"Apologized?"

Barbara took a sip of her milk and then looked at him, an eyebrow raised.

"Yesterday rings a bell? After Daryl was shot?"

Hershel nodded.

"So you're mad that I asked you to leave the room."

"You dismissed me, Hershel. There's a difference," Barbara replied clearly annoyed but her voice remained neutral. She didn't want to fight with him. She just wanted him to understand. "You dismissed me like if I were a child and in front of Patricia, Rick and Shane and Daryl. I thought you trusted my abilities. You've never kicked me out before."

The old man sighed and looked at her seriously, but not in an angry way. He looked like he was already regretting what he was going to say.

"I didn't ask you to leave because I didn't trust you. I did because of the way you were looking at Daryl... and touching him."

The girl opened her eyes surprised and blushed lightly.

"I wasn't touching him! I was feeling for broken bones or more wounds! He had been shot and stabbed and was covered in bruises!"

"And what about your excursion to the woods with him?"

Barbie was speechless for a moment and she felt like he had hit her in the head with a shovel. She looked away a moment. She thought about lying but that wouldn't help her case about him treating her as the adult she was, so she turned and faced him. It hadn't happened anything and she had nothing to apologize for.

"I helped him look for Sophia. Nothing else."

"That's why you sneaked out?"

The girl couldn't help to blush. Yep, definitely not helping with her argument.

"I didn't want to worry you. Nothing happened. We were both fine."

"It doesn't matter, Barbie. I don't trust these people."

His tone of voice had been changing and now he was clearly upset and he looked hard at her. The girl frowned.

"They're not bad people," Barbara did not understand her uncle. Hershel was a very good and charitable man. He always helped others and the way he cared for Carl proved it. So she didn't understand why he was being selfish now.

"Maybe not all of them, but I wouldn't put your friend Daryl as a good person either. He stole Nelly."

She gave him a look and huffed.

"Please, he wasn't stealing. It wasn't like he was going to run away the horse or hiding it in the RV."

"It doesn't matter. I don't trust him. And I don't trust him near you! He's older. He could've knocked you out easily if he wanted. He could've hurt you!"

"But he didn't. He's not like that!" Barbie replied getting as angry as he was.

"You don't know him!"

The girl stood up angry now.

"I do. And even if I didn't it's my problem. I'm not your daughter and I'm not a minor! You don't get to tell me what to do! And what about Maggie huh? She's getting real close with Glenn. Did you make her a scene too?"

Hershel huffed.

"Please. Maggie could arm-wrest that guy. And I did talk to her. Either way, it doesn't matter, they're not staying. I made Rick that clear."

She looked at him harshly, finally understanding something.

"Daryl didn't leave the guest room because he wanted, did he?" She asked him upset. Hershel didn't look away and he didn't look a bit sorry either.

"He didn't say anything when I asked him to leave."

Barbie shook her head, disappointed in him.

"You're unbelievable," she took her place and went to the kitchen, not hungry anymore, but stopped at the doorway and turned to him.

"I not only helping Daryl to look for Sophia. He agreed to teach me how to use the crossbow. Today is our first train session and I'm not going to miss it. And just to be clear; I'm telling you. I'm not asking."

She then turned around and left Hershel alone.

* * *

On her way to the stairs she bumped into Maggie and Isabelle who clearly had been shamelessly eavesdropping. Maggie crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, but she wasn't mad at Barbara. She was more amused than anything.

"So you threw me under the bus, huh," Maggie told her cousin, and Barbara smirked and shrugged.

"He's always blaming you for something anyway. So I just figured..."

"You backstabbing bitch," Maggie replied chuckling and crossing her arms. "And what's all that about I heard about sneaking out with that guy, Daryl is it?

Barbara sighed rolling her eyes.

"Gosh, not you too! Nothing is happening with him. I have a boyfriend and I'm not some slut, thank you very much."

Maggie raised her eyebrows at her clear annoyance.

"You don't have to be a slut if you like him-"

"Which I don't," she firmly clarified, placing her hands on her hips. "I like him as a friend. He's a good guy under all that backwoods kinda look. Besides I'm not the one fooling around with... what's his name? Glenn?"

That wiped Maggie's smirk off and now was her turn to glare. Isabelle turned to her cousin with a grin.

"What? I knew it!" She said happily.

"I did not such a..."

"Please," Barbara interrupted Maggie, not giving her a chance. "After that run to town he was grinning like an idiot. Guys just grin like that after only after one thing..."

"And those glances at the table," Isabelle added and both sisters smirked at her annoyed cousin.

"Stop it."

"See, it's annoying. So?" Barbara pressed.

Maggie sighed and pulled her hands on her back pockets.

"Fine. But it was just once," Maggie said practically whispering.

"Sure," Isabelle smirked knowingly.

"Then I told him we should do it again."

"And?" Barbara raised her eyebrows.

Maggie huffed annoyed.

"He went to the barn and saw all the walkers."

Both sisters stopped smiling.

"What?"

"Did he tell anybody?" Barbara frowned. If Rick's group found out they won't be too happy to learn they'd be camping next to at least a dozens of walkers. And they could go and make something stupid.

"I told him not to," Maggie replied seriously. "He's going to be real sorry if he did. And don't you tell Daryl about that."

Barbara rolled her eyes.

"If I didn't ask Hershel much about that when we came, I'm not going to go around saying it to everybody."

"Well, but aside from that, do you like him?" Isabelle suddenly asked, apparently not interested or worried about Rick's group finding the walkers on the barn.

Both Maggie and Barbara turned to her a bit confused at first because of the change of topic.

"What?"

Barbara glared at her sister.

"I told you that nothing..."

"Not you, Maggie," Isabelle rolled her eyes and then looked at Maggie. "Do you like Glenn?"

"No. Well..."

"You do," the blonde grinned amused.

"I'm not sure" Maggie replied crossing her arms and frowning at Isabelle. "There are things I definitely I'm not a fan of..."

"But still you were going to have sex with him again," Isabelle reasoned.

"Shh! Ellie!" Maggie interrupted her and then turned to see at the entrance of the living room as she would find Hershel standing there at any second.

Isabelle crossed her arms and huffed.

"Why you two have all these prospects? And what do I have? Nothing. The closest to my age is Carl. Well, now that I think about it, that cop Shane it's really hot," she said pensively as really considering but her sister quickly looked at her as she had lost her mind.

"Hell no. That guy it's twice your age and a real ass," Barbara scolded her Isabelle. The only person she didn't trust in Rick's group was Shane. There was something about him she just didn't like. And the last thing she needed was Isabelle chasing after him.

"Are you going to play the age card? You?" Isabelle teased her and the brunette blushed glowering at her.

"I swear I'm this close to kicking your ass if you keep teasing me about that," Barbara threatened her sister. Then she turned around and started walking upstairs to get her crossbow.

"Where are you going?" Maggie asked and Barbie stopped in the middle of the stairs.

"I'm going to train a little."

"Isabelle and Patricia also wanted to do some gun training with Rick's group. Why don't you ask my dad if you could join them?"

"She's not gun training. She's crossbow training," Isabelle quickly and slyly replied, smirking at Maggie. Her cousin quickly smirked back.

"Really? And who could possibly teach her that?"

Barbara glared at them before turning around stomping upstairs. She gave them the middle finger, while their chuckles followed her upstairs.

* * *

"Morning," Barbie greeted Daryl, ducking to enter his tent. She sat on a cooler next to him and gave him a smile. He was lying just on a sleeping coat, leaning on two pillows, fidgeting with an arrow. The bandage of his head was gone and he just had a parch on him.

"Hey."

The girl looked him over. He wasn't pale, looked sleepy or in pain which was good. Her eyes also noticed his shirt was almost buttoned to the middle and she quickly looked at his face.

"How are you feeling?" She asked him.

"Like shit."

The girl smirked at him rolling her eyes.

"Have you had any breakfast yet?"

"Yeah, Doc. Don't worry about me," he responded teasingly and her smile widened.

"Have you been in pain or the stitches are bothering you?"

"No, everything's fine," he huffed at her insistence.

"Good."

Barbara made a pause before looking at him apologetically.

"I'm sorry Hershel kicked you out but..."

"Is okay. I get it," Daryl interrupted her, shrugging. He really didn't seem to mind. The girl nodded and the book next to him caught her eye. The girl picked it up and read the title.

"The Case of the Missing Man," she read aloud and looked at him smiling. "Is any good?"

Daryl shrugged.

"Andrea just brought it to me as an apology for almost shooting my brains out," he said sarcastically but without any trace of resentment or anger. Barbie was actually a little bit surprised. Even if they didn't have meant it she would be pissed if they had shot her.

"Do you like to read?" She asked placing the book back where it was.

Daryl squinted at her, ready to fend off any illiterate hillbilly jokes but she was just being curious. He shrugged.

"It's okay, not like I can watch TV or something."

"Yeah I guess."

Then Daryl sat suddenly, startling her.

"You ready?"

"Wait, do it carefully!" Barbie scolded him, rushing to his side but he gave her a look before she could touch him.

"I'm telling you I'm fine, woman!" He said leaving the tent carefully. To be as fine as he claimed he was certainly limping a little.

"And I'm telling you you're going to pop open the stitches!" She followed him, watching him carefully almost ready to catch him if he fall. Or at least try because it was probable she would go down with him.

"I walked out your house, didn't I?"

"Daryl, what are you doing?" They turned and Carol walked to them, watching the man worriedly. "You should be resting."

"Nah. I'm fine. I won't go far and I have Doctor Barbara with me."

The girl squinted at him and tried to suppress a smile. She liked the sound of that.

Carol didn't seem convinced though. She looked at the girl a bit harshly, as she where dragging him out, but Daryl was as stubborn as they come and, brushing Carol off, he kept going.

They went to an open field, on the left side the house, passing the camp, where the girl would have room to shoot. Barbie picked up a lawn chair and her crossbow from the porch and checked that Daryl wasn't walking too fast.

Finally finding a place, Barbara opened the chair and helped him down but not before she checked on his stitches. She buggered Daryl until he let her take a peak and when she saw they were intact and the skin around it wasn't strain and red she helped him down despite his complains and trying to snap her hands off.

"Now stand there," Daryl pointed at the place almost in front of his chair and the girl obeyed, carrying the crossbow. "Your target is that tree over there".

He pointed at the trees bordering the woods.

"That's not very far."

"Yeah well, I don't want you to kill anyone yet."

Barbara glared at him over her shoulder and lifted the crossbow as he had showed her.

"Raise the bow a little more, relax your shoulders," Daryl instructed her from the chair. "And stand firmly."

* * *

 _ **Two months ago...**_

 _"Stand firmly. You're the base of that rifle and it's going to knock you down if you don't."_

 _Blake stood firmly and looked at Barbara amused._

 _"Who could've thought you would be teaching me this?" He told her with a smirk. "Miss Kappa Delta 2009. What would your sorority sisters think?"_

 _"That you talk too much Dalton," she told him playfully and smacked her hand in his stomach. "Firm I said! Now raise the rifle. Come on."_

 _He gave her a little smirk before obeying her._

 _"Now keep your target in sight. Ready for the kick back and ... now."_

 _The boy shoot about three yards from the rabbit they were hunting, who just ran away scared._

 _"Not that bad. A few more tries and you may shot just a feet away from the target."_

 _The boy looked down at her squinting._

 _"Ha-ha."_

 _Before she could react, the boy hung the rifle on his shoulder and pulled her to him, his hands wrapping around her waist._

 _"The safety...!" The girl said startled, trying to pull back._

 _"Is on. Relax," and then Blake dipped his head kissing her softly. She surrounded his neck with her arms, pulling him closer and he deepened the kiss. After a few moments she pulled back and sighed._

 _"What?"_

 _"It's just... I'm worried, about Ellie," Barbie said and bit her lip. "She has barely said a word since... Mom died. And I know it's understandable but I'm worried. I'm worried she won't be able to face what's coming..."_

 _Blake stared at her but Barbie's stared was fixed on his shirt._

 _"She will. She has your dad and Brett, me and you. You're stronger than you think."_

 _The girl looked up to him, not sure of herself and he smiled softly._

 _"You are. You're teaching me how to hunt for Christ's sake! And you've killed more of those things than any of us."_

 _Barbara shook her head and looked away._

 _"It's horrible and I hated it. Each time I close my eyes... I see them... coming. Never stopping."_

 _Blake cupped her face with his hands and lifted it to him._

 _"Hey, we're gonna make it work, somehow. You'll see."_

 _The girl nodded and then raising to her tiptoes she kissed him again and he kissed her back, deeper.  
_

 _"Weren't you two supposed to be hunting dinner?" A voice interrupted them. They turned to Brett walking to them, carrying also a rifle. Brett just huffed, and shook his head._

 _"I knew you two couldn't be trusted," he kept going, teasing them. "I should've taught you myself."_

 _Blake smirked, pulling Barbara to his chest and wrapping his arms around her._

 _"Are you as good as her?"_

 _Brett opened his mouth to answer but Barbara was quicker._

 _"He wishes. It took him two years before he could shot straight."_

 _Brett glared at her._

 _"You just love to tell everybody that, don't you?"_

 _Barbara chuckled._

 _"It's the truth. Is not my fault I'm better."_

 _He walked away mumbling and she felt her smile widening. She looked up to Blake who had this adoration look on his face._

 _"I love you, you know."_

 _The girl did, and prayed he wasn't going to tell her any time soon. She wasn't sure she loved him and after all the crap that had being going on she wasn't even sure she could feel much again. But she couldn't say that._

 _"Me too."_

* * *

"Scorpions."

"Who?"

Daryl made a face leaning on the chair to Barbara.

"Don't tell me you haven't heard from them."

"It does ring a bell but I don't know what they used to sing." Barbara shot the crossbow and she missed. The arrow ended on the tree next to it. The girl glared at the arrow.

"Dynamite, Alien Nation, Rock you like a hurricane..."

"Oh yeah, I know that one. My dad liked it," she said placing the crossbow down, placing her foot on the cocking stirrup to hold it in place.

"Really? Your dad?" Daryl huffed mockingly, twirling an arrow on his hand. Barbara rolled her eyes.

"Who do you think was my dad? The Monopoly guy?" She said sarcastically as she wrapped her hand in his bandana.

"Well he raised you, didn't he? And look at you. Your name is even Barbie. There's irony if I ever heard one. Isn't by chance your last name Brady?"

He looked at her smirking and she glared back. Then she bent and pulled the string up and held it in place. It was tough she realized. She had to pull it as hard she was able in order to ready it. Daryl, though, had been gentleman enough to lend her his bandana so she wouldn't hurt her hands.

"Anyway, you ass, my daddy liked rock like from the seventies or eighties. I'm not sure," Barbara bent, grabbing an arrow form the grass where she had left them and put it in place. "He used to put those songs for us, but no idea what they were. Though when I heard the songs I recognized them."

"Like what?" Daryl asked a bit curious, but not really believing she knew what actual rock music was.

"There was this one that I really like, huh... Every rose has its thorn. Even my sister likes it."

Daryl nodded approvingly, slightly surprised. He watched closely how she was charging the crossbow, and he didn't say anything because she was doing it correctly.

"And you like them, the songs?" He raised his eyebrow and she looked at him shrugging.

"Sure. I mean, I wouldn't put them at a party but I heard them once in a while," Barbara lifted the crossbow and bit her lip. "There was this other one I used sing with him... What was the name? Something like... Where the grass is green and the girls are pretty, won't you please take me home," she sang the last part with a smile and she actually saw Daryl surprised.

"Guns n Roses... not bad," he admitted smiling a little, scratching his stubble. "Maybe you have some hope after all."

The girl shrugged, not seeing the big deal she liked a few rock songs. It wasn't like they were her favorites or anything.

"To be honest I'm not a big fan of rock and that stuff. I just like some. I was more like into... I don't know... Taylor Swift, or..."

"Good God. Just when I was respecting you a little, Marcia Brady," Daryl groaned and she couldn't help but laugh.

"I don't care what you think of me, Dixon," she told him with a smirk and Daryl smirked back.

"Clearly."

"And so what? She had good songs," Barbie replied but Daryl just huffed and leaned closer to her.

"Please. Higher... there you go."

She lifted more the crossbow like he told her and shot. This time she hit the right tree but about three feet higher than intended. Daryl nodded at her approvingly though.

"Favorite movie?" Barbara asked him as she placed the crossbow down again.

Daryl leaned back on the chair.

"The Good, the Bad and the Ugly. Probably you don't have an idea what it is," he thought that if she liked that Taylor Swift chick, her tastes were far different from his regarding anything else. After all he was almost twice her age.

But Barbara just looked up at him and smirked, pointing at him with the empty crossbow as if it were a gun.

"You see, in this world there's two kinds of people: those with loaded guns and those who dig," the girl said, doing an exaggerated Texan accent.

Barbara had already surprised him once and he didn't though she could do it again. He had been wrong.

"No shit. You've seen it? Don't you like stuff like girly movies or some shit?"

"I love old movies, especially classics," Barbara said holding down the crossbow again and wrapping the bandana around her hand. "But I prefer anything of Audrey Hepburn or Humphrey Bogart or Clark Gable. I loved him so much. I wanted to marry him when I was fifteen after seen Gone with the Wind. I still kinda do."

Daryl raised his eyebrows.

"He wasn't like in his forties on that movie?"

Barbara shrugged.

"I don't mind it. I've dated an older guy once," she told him with a smile. Though, the girl realized a bit too late, her smile and what she was saying sounded pretty much like she was flirting with him. And it was obvious he had thought it too because he looked a bit uncomfortable. Barbara blushed and busied herself by pulling up the crossbow string.

Daryl watched Barbara and how she was embarrassed. She had been just chatty. She hadn't meant to insinuate nothing to him. His first instinct was to tease her about it but then again, she had a loaded weapon and he couldn't run. Better not to tempt her temper.

"Too bad he's dead," Daryl replied trying to joke a bit.

"Isn't everybody's problem these days?" She said trying to sound sarcastic but the reality of it, made her sound melancholic.

Daryl watched her placing the string slowly in place. She suddenly was very quiet and sad looking. He didn't feel like to comfort her. He wasn't very good at it. And he had enjoyed her chirpiness and playfulness so he tried to distract her from gloomy thoughts.

"What's yours?"

"Hum?" The girl looked up at him confused.

"Your favorite movie?" He clarified and Barbara straightened up placing another arrow on the crossbow. A smile slid on her face.

"Can't you guess?"

"Gone with the Wind?" He said rolling his eyes and she chucked.

"Hey, it's a classic for a reason."

"Geez, what's with chicks and those movies?" Daryl grunted, twirling the arrow again in his hand, pleased to see he had succeeded at distracting her.

"Those movies?" She repeated with a raised eyebrow.

"You know, romantic movies. It's just bunch of boring shit."

Barbara actually looked indignant and he failed to suppress a smirk.

"Gone with the Wind is cataloged as an epic, not a romantic movie," she started ranting. "And it was about, you know, appreciating what you have, surviving... pretty much like these days. I've always wondered how Scarlett could do all that on her own. I never thought I could be that strong, or do things she did."

The girl looked away, falling again to that melancholic mood.

"You are though."

Barbara turned to Daryl with her eyebrows raised.

"I mean it," he insisted. "You saved yourselves on the woods, took precautions because you didn't know me, and now you're learning to use a weapon. You are doing that. Surviving." She didn't hear mockery in his voice. He wasn't teasing. He was being serious. Barbara smiled at him and then turned to the tree, raising the charged crossbow.

* * *

 _ **Two months ago...**_

 _The rabbits were chewing easily unaware of the humans hovering near._

 _Barbara and Brett looked at their father who just nodded. All three raised their guns and pointed._

 _The girl saw the rabbit she was pointing at going still and lifting its little ears up... She just couldn't. Brett and her dad shot at the same time and she was late for barely a second. But it gave time for the rabbit to run away. So there was only two dead rabbits._

 _William looked down at her daughter with raised eyebrows._

 _"What was that?" He asked her._

 _"I missed."_

 _"Yeah, I know. On purpose," the man huffed stomping to get the rabbits._

 _Barbara sighed a bit annoyed._

 _"What's the point anyway?" She said, hanging her rifle on her back and crossing her arms. "We have enough supplies and we're two hours away from the farm."_

 _"We're not going to make it to the farm today," William replied, hanging the riffle on his back and picked the dead animals. "The interstate is going to be crowded, so we need to take a different route and it's going to be dark soon. Don't want to be driving in the dark through places I don't know."_

 _He then walked to his daughter who looked sick at the bloody bundles, but looked up when William was in front of her._

 _"Look I know you don't want to do it. That you don't think you need to do it. But you do. You need to learn how to survive. This," the man raised the rabbits, "may be the difference between dinner and starvation. Life and death. I know you don't want to shoot bunnies, or Bambies, but you can't think of them like that anymore."_

 _Barbara looked at him intently and then nodded, a little bit ashamed of her weakness. Her father smiled and made a gesture with his head._

 _"Go to your sister, honey. And send your boyfriend," William told her daughter, then smirked a bit. "If you're going to do the hunting, the least he can do is come and learn how to skin them."_

 _"Sure, daddy," the girl said and left quickly, relieved that at least her dad hadn't made her skin the poor rabbits._

* * *

"Now if you could only shoot that damn arrow straight," Daryl grumbled.

"It's not my fault. The crossbow doesn't work right or something," Barbara defended herself frustrated because the bows had been falling on the same spot but above the mark she was supposed to be pointing at.

"The bow's just fine," Daryl replied looking at the weapon and then at the girl. "Shoot, again. I want to see what you're doing wrong."

Barbara huffed and mumbled under her breath but charged the bow as quickly as possible. Then she shot and the arrow went directly above where she was aiming.

"See, the bow," she complained looking at him.

Daryl who had been watching her closely, her standing and the movements of her hands, had finally seen why she couldn't aim.

"It's not the bow," he responded looking at her. "You're still doing what I told you about the rifle?"

Barbara nodded.

"Yes."

"Forget it. Is messing you up. You're jerking the crossbow because you're expecting a stronger kick-back like with a rifle. Here," before she could react he stood up rather quickly and stepped to her.

"No, you can't be standing," the girl protested watching him for any sign of pain but he snapped away her hand reaching for him.

"It's just a moment," he said ignoring her worry. "Stop fuzzing, woman. Now here," he grabbed her by her shoulders and turned her to put her in place. Barbara lifted the crossbow and Daryl placed her hands over hers, and stepped close behind her, his close pressed close to hers.

"Hold still," he told her and he did but not so much because of the crossbow but because he was too close. His breathing was on her neck and was beyond distracting. She had forgotten already what he had just told her.

"Don't move it, and..." Daryl pressed the trigger and the arrow flew hitting the mark. Barbara was surprised by this that she forgot a bit her earlier discomfort and squealed excited.

"There you go." Daryl smirked at her happiness and she turned to the side to look up at him. Her eyes were gleaming and she had a smile on her face. He couldn't help to notice the green lights in her brown eyes or her smell like lavender or... Daryl opened wide his eyes and quickly stepped back as she had just burnt him. Her smile disappeared and she frowned worried.

"Are you okay? Are your stitches hurting or...?"

"No, no, it's fine," he quickly replied, relieved she hadn't noticed. He slumped back into the chair, breathing deeply, trying to get the smell of her out of his nose.

"Now, you can't be sitting and standing just because, Daryl," Barbara scolded him, placing a hand on her hip. Daryl huffed at her. He then wondered how someone so tiny could do all the things she did. She wasn't short but even Glenn was taller and she was so skinny that it felt like a hard blow could knock her over. And she had felt even smaller between his arms... No, no, he wasn't going there. No way. Stop thinking about that...!

"Daryl, please. I'm serious. You could pull out the stitches," her annoyed voice snapped him out of his thoughts and he just moved lightly on the chair, trying to looked annoyed and not uncomfortable.

"Fine, I promise. I won't do it," he said gruffly.

"Good. They're healing pretty well if you can do all this without hurting yourself," Barbara continued unaware of were his thoughts had been just a moment ago. "At this pace tomorrow you'll be in your feet but don't overdo anything. Don't pull anything heavy."

"Sure, Doc," he said rolling his eyes a bit. She worried way too much.

"So, I'm going to keep looking for Sophia tomorrow. Wanna come?"

Barbara nodded.

"Someone has to make sure you don't do anything stupid," he told him with a sly smile before starting to walk to the trees to retrieve the arrows.

"Funny, smart-ass," he called after her and she smirked at him over her shoulder and he smirked back.

Daryl would never admitted it, not even to himself, but his eyes wandered to her backside when she walked away.

* * *

 ** _Two months ago_**

 _"What's that?" Isabelle asked looking through the window._

 _"It looks like a school," Blake replied also poking his head out of the car._

 _They were barely fifteen minutes away from Hershel's farm but they had to cross Senoia's town first. Now they had reached the high school but it hadn't been deserted like other places they had found. This building was crowded and not only with people but with soldiers._

 _"Dad, look," Brett pointed at a make-shifted sign. It read: SAFE ZONE._

 _"You think it's secure?" Isabelle asked his father._

 _Two soldiers were already walking to them, and making them signs to come forward and pull over.  
_

 _"Maybe we could stay today," William told his kids and Blake. "See how they're holding up to and if they're not good, we just head to Hershel's."_


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you guys, for your reviews. I'm glad you like it so far.**

* * *

Chapter 6

Safe Zone

...

 _ **Two months ago...**_

 _Barbara looked at the building as her dad pulled over the car. The fences had been bolstered. In the parking lot there was an emergency medical trailer, an army camp and trucks, and cop cars. There were a few snipers in the roof, and other soldiers patrolling the area. On the left side of the school there was a few gathering of walkers but they were easily shot down._

 _The girl smiled slowly. This was it. There was enough people and guns to keep them safe. She wouldn't lose anybody else. She turned to see Isabelle who had been like on a catatonic state since their mother had passed. The blonde was also looking at the school with hope in her eyes. She met Barbara's eyes and smiled back. The brunette reached for Isabelle's hand and squeezed it softly._

 _The soldiers helped the girls out and the newcomers blinked under the Georgia sun. The girl noticed that the soldiers not only carried assault rifles, but they also had hunting knifes and hand guns on their belts. Both men looked tough and incredibly tired. As if they hadn't sleep in weeks... and probably they hadn't._

 _"I'm Sargent Kuber and this is Rodriguez," the one who looked older introduced himself. He had blue eyes and a thick grey beard. The other had brown short hair and had a look on his face that the girl didn't like._

 _"Hi, I'm William Henderson and this is my family," Barbara's father extended a hand and the Sargent shook it firmly._

 _"Welcome. Is only you five?"_

 _"Yes."_

 _The man nodded. Despite his raspy voice he was being polite._

 _"Alright. Register over there," he told them pointing at a tent. "Name, age, occupation, and where are you from. You can give me your keys, sir."_

 _Barbara looked at her father not wanting him to do it. She didn't like the idea of just handling them their only escape route. Brett and Blake also turned to look at William but he just smiled at the man._

 _"I'm fine, thank you."_

 _He tried to walk away but both men blocked his way._

 _"I'm afraid, sir, I wasn't asking," Kuber replied extending a hand, his face intimidating. "Your guns and weapons too."_

 _William glared at him and squared his jaw._

 _"No."_

 _"They're official orders."_

 _"In case you haven't noticed there are corpses around walking and eating people. You're not taking my family's weapons away."_

 _By the corner of her eye Barbara saw four more soldiers approaching. Three surrounded the van and the other joined Kuber and Rodriguez._

 _"Sir, I understand where you coming but this is a safe zone," Kuber said trying to be polite again. "You don't need to worry about the infected in there."_

 _The three soldiers opened the van truck and started unloading their boxes._

 _"You're taking our supplies too?" Barbara asked him upset. William turned around, seeing the men now angrily._

 _"We need to gather all possible supplies and distribute them among all the people fairly, miss," Rodriguez told Barbara almost glaring at her. "You'll receive your ration and protection."_

 _"Alright. I understand but you know what, we're fine on our own so, we'll be going," William replied placing a hand on Isabelle's shoulders to guide her back to the van but the three soldiers blocked their path again._

 _"You're not going anywhere," Kuber told them, looking William straight in the eye, his hand on the handle of his rifle. "Here you're safe. You're staying. Am I clear... sir? Now, the register, your keys and your weapons."_

 _Barbara, Brett, Blake and Isabelle turned to William who glaring and his jaw set, handed the car keys reluctantly to the Sargent. The man nodded at them._

 _"Now, your weapons. All of them."_

 _Nobody moved until William reluctantly took of the rifle off his back and handled it. And then his hand gun. Barbara handed Rodriguez her rifle and her gun. He snapped his fingers at her._

 _"The knife too."_

 _The girl turned to her father who nodded. Barbara took off the knife and passed it to the soldier, glaring at him._

 _"What about our personal stuff?" Isabelle asked. Rodriguez looked at Kuber who nodded._

 _"You can keep them, but we need to check you don't have any kind of weapon or supplies in there."_

 _Everyone went to the van. Barbara quickly took her stethoscope and the medical kit out and put it under a seat. She looked up to check if they had noticed something but Brett's body was hiding her. She closed it and exited the vehicle._

 _They had to open their bags and they opened stuff making sure they didn't have anything extra with them. Once they were almost empty handed, they walked into the parking lot to the tent. The busiest part out there was the medical trailer. Doctors and nurses were constantly entering and exiting the trailer, carrying supplies._

 _Barbara felt her father's hand brushing her shoulder briefly and she looked up to him. He didn't look at her, as if he didn't done it on purpose but he spoke to her in a whisper, barely moving his lips: "Don't put you're a med student."_

 _The girl frowned but looked ahead so the soldiers couldn't notice they were talking._

 _"Why?"_

 _"Just do it."_

 _They all register and instead of a med student Barbara wrote she was studying Economics. She didn't think they will question her about it. The soldier who was in charge of the register leered at her and at Isabelle in a way it chilled her blood. She just glared at him, letting him know she wouldn't take bullshit, but without any weapon on her and with all this soldiers around she was starting to feel more scared in the safe zone than outside._

* * *

 _Two soldiers walked them to the gym that was crowded with people. Some of them turned to look at them but most of them didn't even look up. It looked like a refugee camp, Barbara thought. They were taken to the far part next to the benches were there were two empty cots. One with a severe look placed two blankets on one cot and passed them a bottle of water to all of them. The other put a medium sized box next to the blankets._

 _"The bottles of water can be refilled three times a day and the rations are for the whole day. You decided how to divide them."_

 _"Two cots? It's that all?" William asked angrily. "We're five people."_

 _"And you were lucky you have two. Newcomers won't be that lucky next time," the severe-looking soldier snapped at him. "My name is Major Schwartz. This is Bullard. If you need medical assistance or had problems with someone, you come to us."_

 _And with that they left. Everyone glared at them but they couldn't do anything about it._

 _William just snored angrily and sat on the empty cot and grabbing the box. He opened it and went through the supplies. There were three cans of soup, a tuna can, a peach can, two packets of beef jerky and a packet of crackers. There was also one can opener and two plastic forks._

 _There was enough for everybody but only for one meal and it wasn't even noon yet. Brett and Isabelle sat next to their father and, Barbara and Blake in front of them. Barbara watched her father going through the stuff with his jaw set and she understood there wasn't much for everybody. The girl felt rage surge in her chest. They had had plenty stuff in their van enough for a week, and they had just caught a couple of rabbits. And they had been not even an hour away from Hershel's farm. If only they had taken another route... Now they were trapped._

 _"So there's soup, peaches and tuna cans... I'm going to keep them for dinner so here," he passed a packet of jerky to Brett, the other to Barbara and the crackers to Isabelle. "Eat up."_

 _As they opened the food, a black man and his son walked to the cot next to them. He looked like in his forties and the kid was six at most, hugging fro deal life a stuffed baby Mickey Mouse. When he saw them, he smile friendly and walked to them._

 _"I see you're new here. Hi, I'm Michael Carver, and this is my son, Christopher."_

 _The kid smiled shyly and they smiled back._

 _"Nice to meet you, Michael. I'm Will Henderson," Barbara's father replied standing up and shaking Michael's hand. "This is my son, Brett and my daughters, Barbie and Ellie. And this is Blake, Barbie's boyfriend."_

 _"Nice to meet you all."_

 _Michael resulted to be a very nice guy. He had been an accountant from Savannah. He had been on his way to Atlanta when he found the high school._

 _"They made you stay too?" Will asked still angry about it, crushing a little bit his piece of jerky._

 _"No... at first. They are going to send people to Atlanta, once they know the situation is controlled over there."_

 _The kids and Blake looked at William who lowered his voice so only Michael could hear._

 _"Atlanta was bombed a few days ago."_

 _Michael's face fell._

 _"What?"_

 _"We fled from there. I just knew it wasn't safe and two days later we saw it. A few airplanes came and bombed it. You could see the fire from miles."_

 _Michael hung his head and ran a hand across his face._

 _"My sister was there. We were going to join her," his voice breaking up. Will nodded._

 _"I'm sorry."_

 _There was a silence where nobody said anything. They just kept eating, thinking about the people they had lost. Barbara thought about her mother, but also about Mrs. Higgins, their housekeeper and former Nana. About her best friends Sarah and Ashley. They had gone to Paris for winter break and she had almost joined them. She wondered if over there the situation was different. Maybe it had been only America the one who had fallen._

 _Christopher knocked accidentally his Mickey off the cot and Isabelle quickly caught it and passed it to him. The little boy hugged it and smiled at the blonde._

 _"It's really pretty," she told him with a smile._

 _"It's his favorite toy," Michael said with a smile. "He has it since he was born, don't you Chris?"_

 _The little boy nodded._

 _"Ellie has one too, don't you?" Barbara teased lightly her sister, who blushed but opened her backpack and pulled out a raggedy stuffed bear._

 _"This is mine. Her name is..._

 _"...?" Michael asked confused and Isabelle chuckled._

 _"For... "_

 _"Maybe we should have allowed you to see that when you were four," William responded with a smile and they laughed._

 _"That explains a lot. So that's why she's this way," Barbara said sarcastically with a teasing smile._

 _"Shut up. She's just jealous because I'm the favorite," Isabelle told Christopher who giggled at the sister's banter._

 _"I'm the oldest. I am the favorite one," Barbara argued, matter-of-factly._

 _"Technically you're the middle child," Brett replied with the mouth full and a smirk._

 _"See? You're not loved," Isabelle shook her head. "And she's adopted."_

 _Barbara squinted at her._

 _"Yes? At least I was planned."_

 _At that Brett and Blake chuckled, both almost chocking on their food. Seeing the kids distracted, William turned to Michael, his face losing the easiness._

 _"Hey, listen. I wanted to talk to you. I don't want to stay in here for long."_

 _Michael nodded and looked at his piece of jerky._

 _"Yeah, the ration sucks and the soldiers are assholes. But at least we're safe," Michael shrugged taking another bite of the beef._

 _"But for how long?" William asked. "Atlanta fell, not long ago. Those things are everywhere and besides... well, things get ugly all the time. I prefer to be able to run than to be held back."_

 _"Where you will go even if they let you go?" Michael said after swallowing looking at the man confused. This wasn't great, but it was better than to be torn apart by corpses._

 _"I have a place and I think I'll be safe there. But now those assholes took my supplies, weapons and car. So if you think they can let us go."_

 _Michael frowned and shook his head._

 _"They won't. They haven't let anyone go. Not at least since we got here. This one guy tried it and... well. I haven't seen him, but I know he didn't escape."_

 _The implication was clear and William nodded. Yes, he didn't doubt it would be difficult and more because the order was quickly falling away. These soldiers would realize soon they didn't need to obey nobody's orders anymore and then things would get worse. As a former lawyer, William had seen enough shit to know human greed. If they were being assholes now, he didn't want to see them later._

 _"So I'll have to figure things out," William responded, his eyes darkening and then looked up at Michael. "Do you know a possible way out?"_

 _The man didn't answer and looked down taking another bite of the jerky. William frowned, reading his face as an open book._

 _"You do, don't you?" He pressed Michael and he sighed before looking up._

 _"HEY!" A shout interrupted and they turned to see Schwartz and Bullard coming to them. They looked pretty angry and all the people turned around to see. The gym fell silent._

 _"What?" William responded angrily, not backing off._

 _"We found this in your van," He lifted Barbara's med books. "So one of your kids is a med student."_

 _Michael frowned and turned to look at William who glared at the men, defiantly._

 _"They were my wife's. She's gone."_

 _Schwartz smiled angrily._

 _"Really? Because we also found this," he lifted a pink stethoscope. "Is this your wife's too?"_

 _William shrugged._

 _"She liked pink."_

 _"The books have the name of your daughter, moron," Bullard snapped at him. "And there was also this," he threw a photo at them and Barbara's heart sank to her knees. It was a photo of her and her friends, Sarah and Ashley. All of them were on campus with their short white robes and stethoscopes on._

 _Bullard pointed at her when she looked up._

 _"You, come with us," he said aggressively. She was still a bit taken a back and she didn't move but her dad did. He stood up and faced the soldiers._

 _"You're not taking her," he said firmly._

 _"People need help," Schwartz snapped at him. "We need as many medical helps as possible. And she will have a place to sleep and rations. Come on."_

 _Barbara didn't move and when the soldiers stepped to her, William blocked their way._

 _"I said you're not taking her," he repeated angrily._

 _Bullard glanced at Schwartz who nodded softly. Suddenly he punched down William. He had not expected it, and the forced threw him to the ground._

 _Barbara, Isabelle and Christopher screamed and the girls knelt next to their father._

 _Brett and Blake threw at the soldiers who grabbed them. One kicked Blake away and the other punched Brett down. Christopher started crying, and grabbed his dad's leg that had just stood up to help them._

 _"No! Stop it!" Barbara yelled pushing away Bullard who had lifted Blake by the collar. The man barely moved but he stopped, glaring at her. "What the hell is wrong with you? You're supposed to protect us."_

 _"Protect you?" Bullard barked. "My job is to risk my goddamn life every fucking day for all the people in here. And guess what? Things aren't going great. And I'll do my job as best as I see fit. Now let's go."_

 _"No," William stood up but Barbara placed a hand on his chest. Then she picked up her backpack and walked to the soldiers._

 _"It's fine, Daddy," she assured him, her voice firm and calm. "I'll be fine."_

 _"Barbie," Blake stepped to her but she raised her hand._

 _"I'll be fine."_

 _William glowered at the men as they took his daughter away. His blood raging wanting to kill something. He turned to Michael who had been almost frozen in place._

 _"Michael, I need to know a way out of here. Now."_

* * *

 _Barbara was taken to the corridor where the infirmary was. They had closed the whole hallway and they were using the other classrooms to keep the patients on. The girl noticed only a few people were using surgery scrubs but all of them had face masks on._

 _Just as they reached the middle of the hallway a man walked out of a room, his shirt and pants splattered with blood, and wiping his hands on a cloth._

 _"Doctor Stevens," Major Schwartz called him and the man stopped and turned around._

 _"We have one more for you. She's a med student," Schwartz said, as they reached the doctor who smiled at Barbara._

 _"Great. My name is Michael Stevens," he introduced himself, extending a hand. He looked like he was in his forties. He was tall, blond and had a gentle but tired face. The girl instantly felt safer with him than with the soldiers._

 _"I'm Barbara Henderson," she replied shaking his hand. By the corner of her eye she saw the Major nodding to the doctor and then the two men walked away._

 _"Nice to meet you Barbara. So you are a med student?" The man asked._

 _"Was."_

 _The man smiled melancholically._

 _"Well, yeah. I guess that's how it is now. So how far you did went?"_

 _"I finished premed. I was half way through."_

 _"Well, you're already more prepared than half of my staff. Follow me."_

 _He started walking to one of the classrooms and the girl followed him quickly. He gave her a face mask and she quickly put it on. They were about to enter a classroom when a couple of soldiers entered the corridor carrying a woman._

 _"Doctor we have another one," one of them told Doctor Stevens and they quickly followed the soldiers. They put the woman on a bed and left the classroom. The girl turned to the doctor._

 _"What happened to her?"_

 _"I don't know. Why don't you tell me," he replied raising his eyebrows and the girl frowned but she approached the woman. She had a wound in her middle and her shirt was soaked with blood._

 _"Here," Stevens told Barbara handing her a couple of surgery gloves. The girl quickly put them on and lifted the shirt carefully._

 _"Stab. She has internal bleeding. Probably spleen or liver pierced. She needs to have a surgery."_

 _The girl turned to the doctor who nodded and then leaned over the woman. Barbara stepped aside so he could examine her and then turned to her. She couldn't see his face but was sure he was smiling._

 _"I think they send you to me just in the right time, Barbara. Now, get ready to perform the surgery. We have three more in line."_


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Bad Timing

...

"The first time I got drunk?" Daryl scratched his stubble, pensively.

"Don't tell me you don't remember," Barbara said raising an eyebrow, as she raised the string and placed it in place.

"Well, not much anyway. I think I was ten."

The girl straightened and looked at him shocked.

"Ten? Who gave you a freaking drink at ten?"

"Merle was a bad influence. And he was an idiot. He thought it was funny," Daryl said shrugging and smirking. But the girl caught something else; a sparkle in his eyes, like he found that memory not only funny but good to remember. He also had a nostalgic look in his face.

"Merle?" The girl asked carefully, smiling softly. She knew Daryl could shut down at any moment as he had been doing whenever the topic became too personal. He watched her a little bit before looking away.

"My brother."

The girl placed the arrow and the crossbow as to give him a bit space and lifted it.

"What happened to him?"

"You know. Shit."

He felt her eyes on him and he sighed, turning to her.

"Before Rick joined the group, he went to a run to Atlanta with Glenn, T-Dog and Andrea," he told her.

"He died?"

"Nah. He was an asshole with everyone as usual. They met Rick there. He handcuffed in a roof and left him there."

"What?"

She got distracted by this and shot by mistake going more to the right. It didn't pass him that close but still he jumped in his chair and they watched the arrow getting lost between the trees.

"Watch it! You wanna kill someone?!" He snapped at her.

"I'm sorry, but... they just left him there?" The girl frowned thinking of Rick. She would never think he would be capable to just to do that. "Atlanta must be filled with those things. What if they got him?"

Daryl shook his head, twirling the arrow on his hand.

"Nah. He's a tough son of a bitch. We came back for him. He cut his own hand and fled. He stole our truck and left us stranded. Haven't seen him since."

Barbara put down the crossbow, looking at him a bit confused. He clearly missed his brother, but there was also a bit of relief in his face.

"And you're not mad at Rick?"

"At first. But he risked his life going back for my brother and he didn't just because. Merle would have gotten them killed. Besides Rick has always protected the group. He has honor and I respect that," Daryl said shrugging, tapping the chair with the point of the arrow he was holding.

Barbie didn't say anything else, just thinking about what he had said. About his lost brother Merle. She knew Daryl had been abused as a kid. She had seen the scars in his back and they looked too old and too deep to be recent. And it was obvious that, besides him being a good man, he hadn't had the best life. His father had probably been some drunken redneck who hit his kids and wife. A boy growing up like that could be really messed up. And at first sight, Daryl looked like that, but he wasn't. He had his heart in the right place. He was loyal and honest. And Barbara guessed that Merle wasn't like that. Merle had indeed grown up to be that messed up. That's why he had been left in that roof.

"What was yours?"

"What?" She turned to him confused. She had been lost in thought and hadn't heard him.

"First time drunk?" Daryl clarified. "Probably on a yacht with champagne and expensive shit."

"Ha-ha," Barbara replied putting down the crossbow.

"I was sixteen at a party and it was vodka."

"With juice?" Daryl sneered and she made a face to him.

"At first. Then we ran out of juice and started taking shots. Then someone brought whisky and tequila..."

"And you were done for," Daryl guessed, his smirk growing.

"Pretty much," Barbara replied smirking back. She didn't remember much of that night and she would never know how she did manage to not twist an ankle with the heels she was wearing.

"The worst part is that I fell asleep on my way home and they just left me bending over. So by the time we arrived I woke up and I was so sick... well, never mind it's gross," she said scrunching up her nose and Daryl chuckled, shaking his head.

"Huh... who would have thought it of you princess?" He teased her.

"It was just that time," she lied shamelessly.

"Sure." His big tomcat smirk just grew.

"Well, I got better at holding my liquor," Barbara said chuckling. "I became a pro."

"I'll have to see that someday," he smirked at her.

* * *

 ** _Two months ago..._**

 _Barbara was too weak to throw up but if she could she would have. During med school she had clandestinely entered surgery procedures. Only to see of course, and passed some instrument to the surgeon. And she had handled them all with professionalism and grace. But she had just cut off a leg with only local anesthesia and the guy had been screaming the whole time. He had even had to be tied down and they had done it on a high school infirmary that ended up looking more like a slaughterhouse. And that had been the last surgery she had performed with Doctor Stevens. The other too had been gruesome too but she was sure she would never forget those screams, as long as she lived. She sat down now on what had been an office, pressing a can of coke to her head._

 _"I know it's horrible the first time," Doctor Steven told her and she looked up at him. "You probably had only seen surgeries from a far."_

 _The girl shook her head._

 _"Not quite. I... I attended a few."_

 _The man raised his eyebrows and the girl shrugged. The world had ended. It wasn't like they were going to arrest the doctors that had let her in._

 _"I pulled a few strings and attended a few surgeries."_

 _"A few?"_

 _"Seven, to be exact," the girl clarified and gulped. "But it had never been like this... That guy's screams..."_

 _"I know," Stevens replied walking to her and sitting on the desk just in front of her. "But just think he saved that man's life."_

 _The girl nodded._

 _"He fainted at the end."_

 _"Probably the impression. The anesthesia must have kept him from feeling that much pain."_

 _In that moment a couple of soldiers walked in, each carrying a box. They left them in the desk next to the man and he thanked them. The doctor stood up and picking a box he passed it to the girl._

 _"Here."_

 _She took it a bit surprised._

 _"What's this?"_

 _"You're ration," Stevens said picking up the other box. "Some perks for breaking our asses the whole day. Now eat up something. We still need to check up on the patients and there's always more coming in."_

 _With that he left her alone and the girl opened the box. There were five packets of jerky, some peach and tuna can, granola bars, apples, more soup and cream cans and even some chocolate pudding. And she had a spoon, a fork, a plastic knife and a can opener. She was surprised but in a good way. Maybe it hadn't been that they had dragged her here. She grabbed her backpack and put half of the supplies in there. She was going to sneak into the gym to take them some more food to his family._

* * *

"Barbie!" The girl stopped before she could shoot the arrow and both she and Daryl turned to see Hershel walking to them. He stopped a few yards away, clearly wanting the girl to come and talk to her away from Daryl.

The girl sighed and put the safety on the crossbow.

"Hold on a sec, I'm going to see what he wants."

Daryl raised an eyebrow as she hung the crossbow on her back.

"You're still pissed?" He asked her.

"No, but if he wants to apologize I'm not going to stop him," Barbara replied, turning to him with a smile. Daryl smirked and watched at the man, while scratching his jaw.

"I have a feeling for the way he's glaring at me, that's not his intention. He wouldn't shoot me, would he?" He looked up to Barbie and she smirked at him.

"I'm not sure."

"Great."

She giggled and walked away, to Hershel. The girl raised her eyebrows but she wasn't angry or upset anymore. Actually, she was in a very good mood.

"Yes, Hershel. You're not going to scold me are you?" She asked him, placing her hands in her back pockets. The man shook his head.

"I won't. I'm sorry I made you feel like I don't trust you. I do. I just don't trust the others."

Barbie smiled softly but sighed a bit exasperated.

"It's kinda the same thing."

"It's not. But I also know you're a capable woman. I've seen you shoot. And Daryl can't walk so I'm not worried about that."

The girl frowned confused.

"Why are you worried then?"

"That Asian kid-"

"Glenn," she corrected him and he nodded his head.

"Glenn. He knows about the people in the barn. And so is Dale."

"What? How?"

"He was sneaking around with Maggie and she didn't stop him before he saw them. Now they know," Hershel mouth was set on a thin line. He was really upset about that.

"Do they all know?" She asked him. She figured no, or they would already say something.

"I'm not sure but I don't think so. So don't tell Daryl anything," Hershel warned her and then raised an eyebrow. "I saw you a bit chatty with him over there."

Barbara rolled her eyes and smiled.

"It is called being social."

"I'm not sure Blake is going to like you being social with that guy."

His comment wiped the smile of her face.

"He's my boyfriend, not my owner. He can't tell me what to do. And I'm just being friendly. There's nothing wrong about that," Barbara defended herself.

Hershel didn't seem too convinced but he nodded.

"Well, anyway don't get too attached. They're leaving. Soon."

* * *

 _ **Two months ago...**_

 _"Where are you going?" A soldier in the gym's door stopped Barbara and she raised her eyebrows. She tried to look as confident as possible._

 _"I'm just going to have dinner with my family. Then I have to go back."_

 _The soldier stared at her hardly and then nodded._

 _"You got twenty minutes."_

 _She let the girl in, but unlike the first time, more people turned to her, looking actually surprised. Barbara was spotted a few yards away. And all ran to her, Isabelle and her father hugging her tightly. But Blake and Brett weren't far behind._

 _"Are you okay?"_

 _"Where did they take you?"_

 _"Did they do something to you?"_

 _"Is that blood?!"_

 _"I'm fine," she assured them stepping out their bear hug and then nodded at their cots, noticing people were staring. "I'll tell you there."_

 _Her dad insisted that she sat on the cot and Michael and his son Christopher were there too. Blake sat next to her, looking at her face intensively, as he thought she would disappear in thin air. The girl quickly opened her backpack._

 _"I only had twenty minutes but I thought I could have dinner with you," she passed them the apples and the cans of soup and cream for her ration. She also pulled out the pudding, Christopher eyes going wide at the sight. The girl chuckled._

 _"You can share it with Ellie, Christopher."_

 _They sat and ate, happily now that they had more food. She told them about her job as the doctor assistant and that it wasn't bad. She was helping people even if it was a lot of work. She assumed that's why she had received more food._

 _Will looked up from his cream can to see if anyone was looking or eavesdropping at him and then leaned to her eldest daughter._

 _"We have a plan to escape."_

 _He whispered to her. She stopped mid bite and looked at him surprised._

 _"What?"_

 _Her dad nodded._

 _"We're leaving the day after tomorrow."_

 _The girl bit her lip, thinking about the injured people on the infirmary corridor._

 _"Maybe... maybe we could stay a bit more."_

 _They all turned to her and Brett frowned angrily._

 _"No fucking way!"_

 _"Hey!" His father scolded him. "Don't speak that way to your sister!"_

 _"Did they brainwash you over there?"_

 _Barbara glared at him._

 _"There are a lot hurt people, Brett. And I think I can help them."_

 _"Yeah, you know which hurt people you can help?" Her brother replied angrily. "Why don't you check Dad's black eye, or Blake's rib or my busted lip after those assholes beat us, huh?"_

 _She looked down at her fruit can and sighed. After the three traumatic surgeries she had forgotten how her dad, brother and boyfriend had been beaten and threatened by the soldiers. They were right._

 _She turned to her father and nodded._

 _"Okay. Let's do it."_

* * *

"Oh my God! Seriously, how stubborn are you?"

"Look who's talking," Daryl snapped back glaring at Barbara.

The girl just crossed her arms, not intimidated by him.

"Daryl, let me see," she said, rolling her eyes.

They were done with the crossbow training and were late. They were going to come back to the house but she wanted to check his stitches first. He had made much more movements that she had anticipated because he couldn't stay sit and she was sure he had hurt himself. But he was being a stubborn big baby, not letting her checking on him.

"I'm telling you I'm fine, woman!" He said gruffly again, snapping her hand off his middle.

"Dixon, I'm warning you!"

She gave him a look and he glared at her for a few moments, before huffing and pulling his shirt up, revealing his bandage.

"There! You're so annoying!" He complained grumbled but Barbie just rolled her eyes.

"Shut up."

She took the bandage off carefully enough to see the wound. The stitches hadn't popped up and they hadn't stretch but his skin looked a bit irritated around them for moving so much.

"Well, you'll be glad to know you despite your efforts didn't hurt yourself," she informed him, starting to put the bandage back where it was.

"See?" He huffed, shaking his head.

"But the skin around the stitches is irritated," Barbara scolded him, looking at him a raised eyebrow. "So you're going straight to that tent and you're not leaving it until tomorrow. Am I clear? And if you do as I say, you'll be on your feet tomorrow. You won't be able to pull anything though but you'll be able to walk normally."

When she was done with the bandage he pulled down his shirt.

"Are you sure?"

She glared at him and Daryl raised his hands and smirked.

"I'm not questioning your expertise, Doc. I just want to be sure. I want to walk normally again someday, you know?"

She raised her chin indignantly.

"Well, you can trust me."

"Alright," he said looking at her and chuckling. She looked up and cracked a smile, shaking her head.

"Hey!" They turned around and Barbie saw Blake coming to them. Her smile faltered when she saw his face. He wasn't happy.

"Hi," Barbie responded forcing her smile in place and crossing her arms.

Blake looked at her and then at Daryl, his face forming a bit nasty smile. Barbie had seen rarely on him. It reminded her of the douches of his fraternity.

"Where you hunting any chupacabra?" He asked mockingly and the girl frowned confused.

"A cheephuh-what?"

"They're bloodsucking dogs. Daryl says he had seen a few," Blake replied, burying his hand on the front pockets of his jeans and looked at Daryl.

"What?"

The girl looked up at Daryl and she saw him glaring at her boyfriend before meeting her eyes.

"There are walking corpses eating people. I don't think a blood-sucking dog it's too farfetched," he defended himself aggressively and the girl shrugged looking at Blake with a little smile.

"Well, he's got a point."

He didn't smile back.

"You missed gun training," he told Barbara and the girl shrugged again, placing her hands in the back of her shorts.

"I know how to shoot a gun... and a rifle," she said matter-of-factly raising an eyebrow. He knew her shooting skills were fine enough. She had even taught him how to use a rifle.

"So what you were doing?"

Blake's question came out a little bit aggressive and the girl raised her eyebrows confused. What the hell was wrong with him?

"Daryl was teaching me how to use the crossbow."

Barbara looked up at Daryl who was passed being annoyed. He was getting pissed. This kid was looking down on him. He was mocking him. And if the guy didn't back off he was going to knock him out, even if he upset Barbara.

"I didn't know you still have that," Blake responded a little bit surprised watching the weapon peeking behind her.

"My dad gave it to me."

"I know but I didn't know you wanted to use it."

"I don't think a few extra skills on our current situation are something bad."

Blake again looked at Daryl with that annoying smirk and then at his girlfriend.

"Really? What did he teach you? Skin rats? Prepare possum? Do some crack?"

Barbara opened her mouth shocked but Daryl had enough. He stepped and threw a punch. Blake barely moved out of the way and Barbara quickly stopped Daryl by trying to push him back.

"Did you just try to punch me?!" Blake yelled.

"Come closer and I'll stop trying, you asshole!" Daryl snapped trying to grab him but Barbara was stopping him and he didn't want to hit her by accident.

"Please! Come on, let's see what you have!" Blake snapped back, stepping to them but it was Barbara who pushed him back. Then she turned to Daryl.

"Stop it! You're going to pop open your stitches!" The girl told Daryl who stopped and glared at her too.

"Then tell your fucking cousin to shut it or I will!" He growled at her but Blake buffed.

"Cousin? She's my girlfriend!" Blake said angrily not only glaring at him but at her. "I know you rednecks can't tell the difference but...!"

"STOP IT!" Barbara yelled at him, catching Daryl before he threw himself at Blake. He almost knocked the girl down but he caught her by her waist. Once Barbara regained her balance, she raised her hands to his shoulders and looked at him.

"Daryl, please just go."

"Dude, don't touch her...!"

"Can you just shut up?!" The girl turned to him angrily stepping away from Daryl. The man glared at Blake. His chest moving up and down violently. He was itching to punch the idiot but he was aware that Barbara wasn't going to move out of the way and he couldn't risk hitting her. No. He would let this guy being the ass here, at least in front of the girl.

"Yeah. It's not worthy," Daryl spat. "See you tomorrow," he told the girl for good measure, rubbing it in Blake's face before walking away.

"Tomorrow?" Blake asked angrily but Barbara just glared at him, crossing her arms.

"What the hell was that?!"

"He's an ass."

"No, you are the ass here!"

Her boyfriend buffed.

"I saw you giggling with him over there. You were looking at his freaking abdomen and touching him all over!"

"I was checking on his stitches!" She snapped at him, just as angry.

"Why don't you let Hershel do that?"

"Because I'm perfectly capable to do it without supervision!"

"You didn't see how he was looking at you," the guy insisted, his voice raising. "He was leering at you. And he could be your fucking father...!"

"We're just friends!"

"Friends? I didn't even know you knew each other!"

"We met a few days ago. We were looking for Sophia."

"And why are you going with him?" Blake lowered his voice considerably but was still upset.

"I'm learning how to track and hunt better from him."

Blake made a noise and forced a smiled, shaking his head.

"What?" Barbara asked him angrily.

"I think there are other reasons," he snapped back.

"Like what?"

"You've been missing lately," he responded squinting at her and crossing his arms.

"Well, you've been kinda M.I.A. yourself."

"I'm doing stuff around the farm! In case you don't notice Otis is not here anymore!" His voice got higher again.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't think you give a shit he's gone!"

Barbara saw red and pushed him with all her strength. She made him trip but he didn't fall, he just glared at her.

"Don't talk to me like that. What's wrong with you?!" She yelled at him.

"Oh, I don't know! My girlfriend is spending time with a redneck...!"

"Don't call him that!"

He ran a hand through his hair.

"Oh geez. Are you cheating on me?"

"Screw you."

She tried to walk away but he stopped her, grabbing her by the wrist.

"No, I mean it. Just tell me."

"You want me tell you? Really?" She stepped to him, looking at him threateningly and Blake had the impulse to step back but he managed not do it. Barbara may be shorter than him and skinny but she was so angry at the moment that she seemed capable to knock him down.

"Yeah."

"I'm telling you're an idiot. There's nothing going on there and if you keep acting this way there's nothing going on here either. Now leave me alone and don't talk to me again until you have an apology and a good one. Douche!" And glaring at him for the last time, she turned around and stomped away.

* * *

 ** _Two months ago..._**

 _"When are you coming back?" Blake asked her, not wanting to let go of her hand. They were by the gym's door and the soldiers just had come in for her._

 _Barbara shook her head._

 _"I don't know. Whenever I have a break. There are a lot of injured people."_

 _"Come on!" The soldier told her and they turned to him, glaring a bit._

 _"I'll see you later," the girl quickly stepped to him and kissing him softly, not wanting to go. When they stepped back Blake cupped her cheek with his hand and she smiled softly at him before leaving the gym._

 _She walked to the infirmary's corridor heavily, wanting to be with Blake, and her family._

 _Barbara went to the bathroom to wash her hands and as she was exiting she bumped into the gym's soldier._

 _"Sorry," she said and moved away but then he blocked his way quickly._

 _"Don't worry, honey. Did you have a nice dinner?" The soldier smirked at her and there was something about it that chilled her blood. She felt the urge to run away. But this man was not only taller but probably stronger._

 _"Yes, I guess."_

 _She looked around and to her dismay, she realized they were alone._

 _"Mmm... that's good. You guys even had pudding, am I right?"_

 _"Look... I need to go, Doctor Stevens must be looking for me," Barbara said quickly trying to surround him but his hand closed around her wrist and he pulled her to him._

 _"Yeah, you have a nice meal while comfy in here and we're risking our necks outside and what do we get? Nothing."_

 _"Let me go!" The girl snapped at him trying to pull herself free but he just laughed. He pulled her closer and sniffed her neck, fear running through her. Still she moved away and slapped him._

 _"Get away from me!" She yelled but despite the slap he didn't let her go. His eyes were glowering dangerously as he glared at her._

 _"Gregory!" A voice rang across the corridor and she saw Doctor Stevens walking to them quickly. The soldier freed her hand immediately and she stepped away from him. "Major Schwartz is looking for you."_

 _The soldier glared at Stevens but walked away. The doctor waited until the other man had left before turning to her. Barbara was looking at the door, while rubbing the wrist he had been holding._

 _"Are you okay Barbara?"_

 _The girl nodded and walked ahead not wanting to talk about what had just happened._

* * *

"Hey! We got your stuff!"

Maggie's voice startled Barbara and she stopped, hiding behind the RV. She peeked around and saw Maggie and Glenn walking to Lori. Well, actually more like Maggie stomping to Lori and Glenn running after her.

"Maggie, hang on, please," Glenn begged her but the girl ignored her.

"Come on in here," Lori said startled, pointing at the tent behind her but Maggie stayed where she was, her voice getting higher because of her anger.

"Why? Nothing to hide. We got your special delivery right here! We got your lotion, got your conditioner, your Soap Opera Digest...!" Maggie said throwing the things at Lori.

"Maggie," Glenn placed a hand on her shoulder but Maggie shrugged it off.

"Next time you want something, get it your damn self! We're not your errand boys!"

"Honey, I-" Lori stepped to her, trying to calm her down but Maggie just took the last box in the plastic bag and threw it at her.

"And here's your abortion pills!"

Maggie stomped away with Glenn looking at Lori apologetically before going after the young woman. Barbara quickly surrounded the RV as silently as possible and walked away looking for Maggie.

...

"Maggie? Are you okay?"

Maggie looked up and saw Barbara leaving the living room and going to her.

"I'm fine," she responded a bit aggressively, still agitated because of Lori and Glenn.

Barbara crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah. You don't sound fine. And the way you were yelling at Lori..."

"She almost got me and Glenn killed," Maggie replied, not even asking how she knew about that.

"What?" Barbara opened her eyes shocked.

"We went into town to fetch... well..."

"Abortion pills?"

Maggie gave her a look and Barbara shrugged.

"I heard. And lucky nobody else."

"Anyway, in the pharmacy there was one of those things," Maggie said swallowing. "He attacked me... Almost bite me. And Glenn he hit him with a shelf or something and separated his head almost completely... and that thing just stood up and kept coming. Gosh, his head was hanging almost cut off his neck. Those things are not alive."

Maggie looked at her with a desperate and hopeless look in her eyes. She knew what she meant. Barbie nodded.

"I know. I tried to tell you remember? That guy explained everything to my dad that day. The brain makes the body move, but it's not alive. They're not alive."

"My dad think they are," Maggie said hugging her torso. "He thinks... they just sick. My mom and Shawn..." Her voice broke at the end and she looked down, swallowing.

"I'm sorry. They're not."

Maggie looked up.

"That's how Aunt Claire died?"

Barbara didn't expect Maggie to ask her that so she just nodded.

"She was bit... I stitched her up. Stop the bleeding... but it was too late."

"I'm sorry too."

"At least you know now."

* * *

 ** _Two months ago..._**

 _Barbara checked on the people, especially those who had been on surgery or were still sick. She finally entered the room where Doctor Steven was. It was a small classroom with only a few people in it. He was checking on a man on a bed next to a window. He looked incredibly pale and had dark circles under his eyes. He then checked his pulse and nodded._

 _"Stay here. I'll be right back," he told Barbara barely turning to her._

 _He then left the room and the girl stepped closer. She placed her hand in his forehead and indeed the man was burning. She stepped back looking at him and stared at him. Suddenly he opened his eyes. But they were milky and Barbara recognized that look just moments before the man threw at her with a deep growl._

 _The girl scream, barely stopping him before he could bite her face off. Just then Major Schwartz and another man entered the room and pulled him away from her. The doctor was right behind them. Doctor Stevens lifted up a nail gun and placing it into his forehead he shot. The walker stopped fighting and then the soldiers dragged him away. And Barbara just stood there, unable to move and she started hyperventilating._

 _Doctor Stevens noticed it and she took her out of the room._

 _"Come on, breath. In and out. Are you okay? Were you bit?"_

 _He figured she would be freaking out if she had but he had to be sure._

 _The girl shook her head, finally calmed down and looked up at the doctor upset._

 _"Why you have him in there if he was bitten?!" She snapped angrily. Good God it was common sense!_

 _"He wasn't bit," the doctor replied._

 _"He was! He turn, didn't he?"_

 _The doctor looked her over, frowning as if he was pondering something. Then he sighed._

 _"You don't have to be bitten to turn."_

 _The girl froze and looked up._

 _"What? Then..."_

 _"We are all infected," the doctor told her and he sighed, suddenly looking very tired and old. "It doesn't matter if you're bit. If you die... you turn."_

* * *

Barbara read the same sentence a third time and she sighed, closing the book and giving up. She couldn't concentrate because she was still so mad at Blake. Luckily in that moment Isabelle entered the house groaning and moving her right shoulder.

"Hey, how it did go?" Barbara asked her sister, rising from the couch where she had been sitting. Elle sighed again and walked to her, falling to the couch next to the brunette.

"I suck, big time. Even Patricia is a better shot and she has never fired a gun," Ellie threw her arms up and pouted. Barbara smiled.

"Don't worry; you'll get the hang of it."

"The whole time I just thought about the times Dad took us to hunt. How I didn't even try. I didn't do anything even. I should've listened to him. I should've tried."

Barbara looked at her little sister and she noticed the sadness and nostalgic in her face. She wasn't only upset because of her shooting skills.

"Hey, you're trying now," Barbie tried to cheer her up. "And you understand you need to learn how to defend yourself, that's the most important thing."

"How can you be so good at this?" Ellie turned her head to look at her, frowning. Barbara shrugged and smiled lightly.

"Motivation."

"Is it a guy?"

Barbie sighed and rolled her eyes.

"No and don't start. It's for you. You're my motivation. And Brett. And Blake. Hershel, Maggie, Patricia... even Otis. I want to keep you safe. All of you. That's my motivation."

Ellie stared at her sister frowning lightly as she didn't understand what she just had said.

"You don't need to. You're always looking after me but..."

"I have to," Barbara assured her, smiling at her and taking her hand. "I'm your big sister. That's what I've always done and always will."

Ellie smiled back and squeezed her sister's hand.

"Love you, B. Sometimes," the blonde teased her sister lightly. Barbara chuckled.

"Love you, Ellie. Sometimes."

"And I love you guys so much," Brett mocked them a bit, passing next to them, going to the kitchen. Isabelle giggled and Barbara smirked, shaking her head.

* * *

 _ **Two months ago...**_

 _Barbara went to sleep way past midnight and had to wake up in the early morning. They had to cut a leg and an arm because from two women because they were bitten. But even then they would have to stay on observation because they weren't sure it had stopped the infection._

 _After that the girl checked on the patients to see that they didn't have fever or other dangerous symptoms when a man, whose leg they had cut off yesterday stopped her._

 _"Doctor," he said grabbing her arm._

 _"Yes, what is it?" Barbara asked him checking him over. He looked fine actually._

 _"I wanna die."_

 _The girl straightened up, looking him with shock._

 _"What?"_

 _"Look at me. I'm a cripple."_

 _"No, sir. You are..."_

 _"I'm a damn cripple!" The man yelled at her. "And I'm useless... Those things would eat me up in seconds... Don't wanna go that way... You have to help me."_

 _Barbara stared at him in shock and shook her head._

 _"I... I cannot do that," she replied._

 _"Please. You must have something, a pill, maybe. Something painless."_

 _"I won't let you kill yourself. I just can't. Excuse me," the girl quickly left the room but the man yelled after her._

 _"WAIT! WAIT! PLEASE!"_

* * *

It was late in the night and Barbara was sitting on the porch rail reading with the light coming out of the living room window. By the corner of the eye she saw the front door opening and closing. She knew exactly who it was but she didn't acknowledge him or looked up.

"Hey," Blake said standing next to her a bit shyly. He had cooled off and he immediately regretted it. But Barbara had been avoiding the rest of the afternoon.

"Have an apology yet?" The girl said matter-of-factly turning the page in her book even when she wasn't reading anymore. "Or you plan on yell me some more?"

Blake sighed, burying his hands on his jeans pockets and nodded.

"I deserve that. I was a douche, big time. And I was unfair to Daryl."

Barbara at that closed the book and turned to him but her face was blank.

"I didn't even mean the things I said," Blake continued running a hand through his hair. "I just... I just feel like you been pulling away from me. Since we came here. And I mean... I don't blame you. I get it. But I just... And then this guy shows up, and you spent all your time with him..."

Barbara sighed a bit exasperated and leaned back on the post.

"It's not like that. I'm learning to defend myself."

"I know. I saw you with crossbow."

The girl nodded and looked at him. He was being sincere.

"Yep. I suck."

"No way. Maybe you're not as good as that guy..."

"Daryl," she corrected him just as she had corrected Hershel hours ago.

"Yeah, Daryl. But I'm pretty sure you can handle that bow just fine. And I'm proud. You're trying to protect us and it's more than I've done..."

Barbara turned to him, staring at him a little bit. She saw he was sorry. And that he really admired her decision but there was also this desperation in his eyes. She frowned at the last part and shook her head.

"You've done plenty. You're helping with the farm... without complaining or asking anything in return. You helped looking for Sophia and you didn't have to."

The girl sighed and nodded.

"I'm sorry too. You're right. I've been like disconnected the past month. I've been pulling away from you and Ellie, and Brett but... I'm trying. It's hard after everything that happened in the high school."

Blake nodded and tentatively reached for her hand. She didn't hold it back but didn't pull away either.

"I know. I... To be honest I wasn't jealous of you spending time with that guy."

Barbara raised her eyebrows, not believing him and he nodded.

"Yeah. I know my douche bag display looks like I was but... I think I bottled up everything you know. Your dad... and then Otis... And I just couldn't reach you. But you were laughing with that... with Daryl. You were at ease. You were relaxed. I don't remember the last time you laughed. Hell, you haven't smiled that much either."

Barbara understood then then. She didn't condone his words or how he yelled at her but she got it. She had also bottled up everything inside. And if she was being honest, it was still there. Yeah, she had released some of the pressure by training with Daryl but she could still feel it and if she wondered someday she would explode like Blake did. Or maybe she would break.

The girl looked up at Blake and smiled lightly, squeezing his hand.

"He's a friend. And he's a good guy. You don't have any reason to be jealous of him," she assured him.

"Are you sure?" He asked smiling back but he knew. Barbie nodded, running a hand through his lightly curly hair.

"Yes."

He leaned forward and kissed her softly and she pulled him closer. But she didn't feel that relieved feeling she was hoping for.

* * *

It was already dark outside but through the window of the tent they had left them when he was shot, Daryl could saw the farm house perfectly. He could also see when Barbara came out a bit after dinner and sat on the railing reading. She glanced a couple times to the camp but he doubted he could see him in the dark. He guessed she was just watching the rest of the group next to the fire. He watched until the dusk ended and the night fell. He couldn't believe the day he just had had. It felt too long but in a weird way. It wasn't bad. Not all of it anyway. He had to admit he had enjoyed spending time with her, getting to know her. He even had opened a bit to her. And they had gotten along just fine. He thought his age would be a problem for the conversation. That they wouldn't find a common ground but surprisingly she did know a lot of things he did.

Daryl pulled out the candy bar he hid in the tent while he had been away and started eating it as he stared at Barbara in the porch. Soon after the door opened again and Daryl couldn't see who it was because it was a bit too far and too dark. But he saw the figure it was tall and it was male. Yeah, he could guess who he was. His blood boiled thinking about that idiot and the things he had said about him. He hadn't heard rednecks jokes thrown at him in a while and it threw him off a bit. He would have knock his teeth if Barbara had been there stopping him. What was his fucking problem anyway? There was nothing going on with him and Barbara. She was just too different to him and even if she was an adult he was twice her age.

He kept watching them but they were almost silhouettes. He didn't hear any yelling and after a while he saw them kissing. He looked away halfway through the candy bar and pulled it away. Suddenly he wasn't so hungry anymore and his anger returned.

* * *

 _ **Two months ago...**_

 _Barbara had just exited the gym in the night after having a quick dinner with her family and walked to the bathroom again to wash her hands. But this time she was aware of Gregory following her. There was no way she was entering the bathroom now. He could easily lock her in and take advantage of her. She walked quickly, passing the bathrooms and turning on the corner._

 _"Hey!" He called her and then she started running. She found the stairs and quickly went there. The second floor was empty but she could hear his footsteps just behind her. Barbara heart pumped as crazy as she ran through the corridor until she found a door that led to the roof. She opened it and closed it behind her without making noise. She could wait there until he had left and if he tried to follow her she just would hide on the roof. There were snipers up there, and she could ask for help._

 _The girl heard Gregory walking outside, approaching quickly the door. She didn't stay and waited for him to find her. She turned around, going to hide behind a pipe. It was already dark and that would make it harder to find her. But as the door opened and she hidden the snipers started shooting. Apparently the walkers on the side of the school had gathered... but the girl didn't realize how much until they started to curse. Gregory, forgetting about her ran to them._

 _"What the fuck is going on?"_

 _But nobody answered and he just stared shooting next to them. The girl realized if he had started to shoot too it had to be serious._

 _"Shit, Sergeant, Gregory hear. It's a heard! We need backup now!"_

 _The girl realized he must be talking on a radio. There was a pause when nothing but shots could be heard, then a male voice yelled: "There's no back up! They're on the fence! If we don't control it now..."_

 _But she didn't hear the rest because the transmission was cut off. Barbara came out of her hiding place and walked to the three men. They were all turned to her and she was sure they wouldn't notice, but still she tried to remain quiet and hidden. She approached the edge of the building and looked down._

 _Her heart fell to her knees and she froze out of fear._

 _There was hundreds of those things piling up on the fence. There was more than she had ever seen. All the soldiers were shooting down on the parking lot but the fence was giving up. And Barbara knew it wouldn't hold for much longer._


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Not out of the woods yet

...

They were all having breakfast next to the fire in silence. Carol was stirring the eggs in the pan, Andrea was sharpening her knife and Glenn was pacing nervously. He finally stood up in the middle.

"Um, guys," he called them but only Shane and Dale looked up to him, so he just decided to blurt it out. "So the barn is full of walkers."

They all stopped what they were doing and turned to Glenn shocked.

After Glenn's statement they all left their breakfast to go to the barn and checked it out. Maggie, who has been watching Glenn from the porch, returned to the house angrily. Hershel wasn't going to like this.

Shane was the one who peeked between a creak on the barn's locked door and in fact saw, in the dim light, at least a dozen of walkers. The group was standing just behind him and he turned to Rick upset.

"You cannot tell me you're all right with this," he said upset, walking to him.

"No I'm not, but we're guests here. This isn't our land," Rick replied as upset as him, watching the barn.

"This is our lives!" Shane yelled.

"Lower your voice," Glenn told him, watching the wooden building almost as he expected to suddenly fell down and released all the walkers inside.

"We can't just sweep this under the rug," Andrea complained.

"It ain't right. Not remotely," T-Dog agreed.

"Okay, we've either got to go in there, we've got to make things right or we've just got to go," Shane started saying airily. "Now we have been talking about Fort Benning for a long time-"

"We can't go," Rick interrupted him.

"Why, Rick? Why?" Shane said as he if were dealing with a five-year old.

"Because my daughter is still out there," Carol replied upset, her voice chocked.

"Okay. Okay," Shane replied huffing exasperatedly, running his hand across his face. "I think it's time that we all start to just consider the other possibility."

"Shane, we're not leaving Sophia behind," Rick replied, firmly.

"I'm close to finding this girl!" Daryl intervened angrily. "I just found her damn doll two days ago!"

"You found her doll, Daryl. That's what you did. You found a doll," Shane mocked him.

"You don't know what the hell you're talking about!" Daryl yelled at him, walking to him angrily but Rick raised his arm, blocking his path before he could reach Shane.

"I'm just saying what needs to be said," Shane kept saying about the other's voices. "Now, let me tell you something else, man. If she was alive out there and saw you coming all 'methed' out with your buck knife and the ears around your neck, she would run in the other direction!"

That Shane's little meth joke reminded Daryl about Blake and the rednecks insults he had thrown in his direction. Daryl's blood boiled and he threw himself at Shane but Rick stopped him.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP!"

"HEY! I'LL BEAT YOUR ASS!"

Shane also threw himself at Daryl and then Glenn, T-Dog and even Andrea had to keep them apart.

"CALM DOWN!"

"HEY!"

"SHANE!"

"BACK OFF!" Rick yelled at Shane when finally he and Daryl were apart, with the group separating them.

"Keep your hands off!" Shane snapped at Lori and then walked away.

"Now just let me talk to Hershel," Rick told him before he left. "Let me figure it out."

Shane stopped and turned around, so angry his ears were buzzing.

"WHAT ARE YOU GONNA FIGURE OUT?!" He yelled at Rick and Lori stopped him.

"Enough!"

"If we're gonna stay, if we're gonna clear this barn, I have to talk him into it. This is his land," Rick snapped at Shane, pointing at the barn.

"Hershel sees those things in there as people," Dale intervened, looking at Rick. "Sick people: his wife, his stepson."

They all turned to the old man.

"You knew?" Rick asked him a bit upset.

"Yesterday I talked to Hershel."

"And you waited the night?" Shane snapped at him.

"I thought we could survive one more night," Dale responded glaring at him. "We did."

Then Hershel turned to Rick and added in a more calmed tone.

"I was waiting till this morning to say something. But Glenn wanted to be the one."

"The man is crazy, Rick!" Shane yelled at the man. "If Hershel thinks those things are alive or no-!"

But he didn't finished because the doors of the barn started to move violently and several growls were heard from inside.

* * *

 ** _Two months ago..._**

 _Barbara looked down and she felt her heart dropping to her knees. She was frozen, paralyzed by fear and the impending disaster. They were hundreds of those things shaking and pushing on the fences. They were being taken down by guns, but they were too many and the noise attracted more. The girl looked at the bent fence and she knew it wasn't going to stand. It was a matter of time, but how long did she had? As that thought crossed her mind she also thought about her dad and siblings and Blake, about that man Michael and his little kid. She had to warn them. She had to take them out of there. The gun shots and growls finally grew louder than her fear. They wouldn't take anything else from her. Not now and not ever._

 _She looked around first looking for an exit route. The snipers and soldiers had their backs on her, too worried for the zombies as to pay attention to her and the shots covered any noises. She moved around the roof quickly, noticing an emergency stair going to the back of the school. They were a couple of vehicles there and some walkers in that side of the fence but not as many as in the front. Actually some of them were drifting to the front, where the noise was coming from._

 _The girl then ran back from where she had come from. She climbed down the stairs quickly but stopped when reaching the gym doors. They were closed and nobody was looking after the people. They were too many, Barbara thought. If she burst in there screaming that they had to leave, panic would let loose and they wouldn't have a chance to escape. They would be trampled over... But there were kids in there. Families like hers. What could she do?_

...

Barbara woke up, startled and for a minute she swore her room was full of walkers. But her mind cleared up and she gasped, trying to catch her breath. She hadn't dreamed about that in weeks. She hadn't also been waking up startled and out of breath. She didn't take it like a good sign.

The girl sighed and moved the sheets away. She saw the light coming out the window and saw the time on the clock on her bedside table. It was ten o'clock.

"Shoot," the girl said quickly peeling off her pajamas and putting on some shorts because it was an especially hot day. She put on a navy t-shirt and cowboy boots. She brushed her teeth and pulled her hair in a ponytail. And as she did all that as fast as she could, she tried to concentrate on the task and not in the images that still flashed on her eyes. She also washed her face to help her snapped out of her bad dreams.

And before leaving, she placed her hunting knife on her hip; she hid her gun on the back of her shorts and grabbed her crossbow.

She went down to the kitchen to eat something quick and she bumped on Brett who smirked at her a bit amused.

"Where are you going Sonya Blade?" He said chuckling and she just glared at him.

"Shut up."

The girl went and put some eggs on a place and a piece of jerky.

"No, seriously. Where are you going with that?" His brother insisted and she turned to him with a raised eyebrow.

"Do we live in the same farm?" She said sarcastically. "I'm learning to use the crossbow. I spent a whole day training."

The boy leaned on the counter with arms crossed.

"Oh... so that's where you were yesterday. I wondered where you were while we were gun training."

The guy took a gulp out of his glass of water. Then he looked at her as he was considering his next words.

"Blake was looking for you. He didn't look happy."

The girl rolled her eyes and went to sit on the table. Her brother followed her sitting in front of her.

"He found me. And he acted like a total jackass. He insulted Daryl. He yelled at me. I was this close to..."

"Daryl?"

Barbara shrugged taking a bit of eggs and eating.

"He's the one teaching me how to use the crossbow."

His brother raised his eyebrows and took a sip of water making a face. The girl frowned.

"What?" She demanded.

"No, I just... I didn't know you know him."

Barbie shrugged.

"I helped him the other day look for that girl, Sophia. And I kinda convinced him to teach me how to use the crossbow... And how to track."

She had imagined her brother to smirk and tease her about something going on there like Elle had done it but he didn't do it, which was weird because he lived for teasing her. He always did. But he just frowned, his face darkening. He looked angry but not with her.

"You don't have to, you know," he finally said, his voice losing his typical mischievous tone. The girl frowned confused. "Those things, I mean, you shouldn't worry about that. You're doing enough learning all that medical stuff you don't have to also try to protect us. I'm here for that. I will protect you and Ellie."

Barbara finally understood his expression. He had been upset but with himself.

"I know you can protect us. I've seen you shoot," Barbie replied, softly. "But it's enough. I don't think that anymore. It's not enough you want to protect us. We need to do it ourselves."

The girl looked down at her plate.

"It just takes one moment... one slip. Just look what happened to Otis, to Dad, to Doctor Stevenson, to that girl... Nothing last anymore. Sooner or later we're gonna have to run again and when that moment come I wanted to be prepared."

Brett looked at her sister as if it was the first time he saw her. He looked at her intently and had the urge to hug her but he didn't. He got it. They needed to be better prepared. Tougher.

"I'm gonna take Ellie gun-training myself," he finally told her, breaking the awkward silence. "And I'm gonna stop until I'm sure she can't miss."

Barbara looked up to him, and smiled softly.

* * *

 ** _Two months ago..._**

 _The girl entered the gym as calmed and collected as she was able to put off under the circumstances. But as soon as she entered all eyes turned to her. All the people in the gym were scared. They held one to the others looking apprehensive because the gun shots could be heard really clearly. Some of them were perched on the windows looking outside._

 _"What's going on?" A guy angrily demanded, stepping to her and the others just started to scream scared._

 _"We want to go."_

 _"There are children in here!"_

 _"We need to get the fuck out of here...!"_

 _"Hey, hey!" The girl shouted so they could shut up. The guy who had talked first just closed his mouth and glared at her. "I was on the infirmary. I'm just like you. I'm not sure what's going on. They wouldn't tell me. They just said it was under control," Barbara lied, coldly._

 _They started to yell again, demanding her things that she just couldn't do. By the corner of her eye she saw Bret, Blake and Ellie making her way towards her._

 _"Like I said, I don't know anything! I'm sorry! And I have no authorization to do anything either!" She nodded at her siblings to come to her to the door as that guy and many others glared at her, still shouting questions she ignored._

 _"What's going on?" Brett quickly demanded under his breath, looking around to be sure no one was listening._

 _"Where's Dad?" Barbara asked noticing he wasn't on the gym and she was sure they just would let him leave if he wanted._

 _"The plan is on," Blake mumbled. "He went to get a car."_

 _The girl sighed, thinking she now had to go after him. She was afraid he would get caught and the soldiers would kill him._

 _"Shit, I need to go and get him."_

 _"Why it's going on?" Bret pressed further and Barbara bit her lip nervously._

 _"There's a... heard, I guess."_

 _They looked at her, confused._

 _"Walkers... Thousands of them, and they're coming even more. They won't be able to hold them out."_

 _The horror in their faces probably reflected the one she felt on that roof. Well, maybe not as much. They didn't see it._

 _"What are we going to do?" Ellie asked starting to cry and Barbara looked around alarmed. The last thing they needed is for everyone to know the situation was that bad already._

 _"I've got a plan. But you need to act like everything's fine or everyone's going to panic and we would be dead," She said looking at her sister and her watery eyes. The blonde swallowed scared but she took a deep breath trying to control herself._

 _"What is it?" Blake asked his girlfriend._

 _"Okay, so the second floor is completely empty. There is an exit to the roof where there's a stair to the back of the school. There are some cars and is practically empty back there. But we need to do this carefully so the people won't notice."_

 _"But... all these people..." Isabelle started and Barbara sighed, her stomach in knots._

 _"I know. But we need to think about ourselves first. Once you're out, I'll tell everybody."_

 _Bret nodded._

 _"Let's go."_

 _"No," Barbara shook her head. "You need to stay here for now."_

 _"What?"_

 _"Did you say the fence wasn't going to hold?" Bret demanded angrily and Barbara shushed him as upset, looking around. That guy was looking at them suspiciously._

 _"I need to find that, get the keys. And then took you out with some excuse so the people don't start rioting... but if they do before I came back stay closed to those doors."_

 _The girl looked at some closed doors in a far corner._

 _"I'm gonna let them unlocked. Then you'll have to go right twice and then left to find the stairs. Go to the roof and wait for us there. There snipers and a few soldiers up there so don't let them see you. But only if I don't come back before this gets ugly, alright?"_

 _Blake and Ellie nodded but Bret just looked at me wearily._

 _"Bret!"_

 _He buffed but then nodded._

 _"Alright. We'll wait. Be careful."_

 _The girl nodded._

 _"I will. Tell Michael and Christopher about the plan too. Take them with you."_

 _The she left quickly as some guys were shouting after her. With some luck, they would stay on the gym until she had returned._

* * *

After his fight with Shane in front of the barn Daryl was pissed. Actually he was beyond that. He saw red. He stomped to his tent for his knife, determined more than ever to find that girl and shut everyone's mouth.

He heard steps coming and he knew it wasn't Barbara. He turned around and saw Blake coming to him, but that nasty douche bag smile was gone. Still, Daryl's body stiffened and he glared at the boy, prepared to hit him this time.

"I didn't knock your teeth out because of Barbara but if want to keep messing with me..." Daryl threatened the boy stepping to him but he raised his hands.

"I actually came to apologize, man."

Daryl raised an eyebrow and huffed.

"What? Barbara made you?"

Blake pulled his hand down and looked at the older man with a raised eyebrow.

"Actually no. She doesn't know I came."

Daryl just glared at him, noticing he was telling the truth.

"Look man, I'm really sorry. I was a douche yesterday..."

"No shit."

"Yeah well, I didn't mean it. What I said. The redneck jokes."

Daryl gave him a look and huffed.

"No, really. I just wanted to piss you off. I don't think any of that. I think you're a decent guy even if you did try to punch me yesterday."

Daryl raised an eyebrow because he knew Blake was being honest. What the hell was going on? Yesterday he had been a real jerk just because he was jealous and now he was acting like another person.

"I don't think you wanna hurt, Barbara either. And she's smart. She wouldn't trust you if it wasn't like that," Blake continued. "But I've seen how you're looking at her and I don't like it."

Daryl grumbled.

"You don't know what you're talking about," he snapped and walked away but the boy followed him.

"No I am. And I'm pretty sure you know what I mean. I get it. She's pretty. She's witty and she's kinda a force to be reckoned with. I'm guessing you just find her attractive and that's fine. But man, the thing is she's my girlfriend and that isn't going to change any time soon. She likes you as a friend I guess but that's it. She's just being nice."

Daryl stopped and turned around to him. Shane had really pissed him and now this guy was just adding wood to the fire.

"Yeah? Well, why don't you tell her that? Huh? She's the one who asked who followed me to the woods. She asked me to train her with the crossbow. Not the other way around. I haven't started anything, so don't come at me with that shit."

"I know, you haven't started anything," Blake said seriously. "But I want it to stay that way."

Daryl looked him from head to toe, recognizing the threat.

"Or what?" He snapped at Blake, walking to him threateningly. Daryl was so angry that he would punch Blake at the least provocation but the guy didn't want to upset him anymore.

"Just stay away from her, man."

Blake glared back at Daryl and walked down. Daryl was already regretting not punching that little prick.

* * *

 _ **Two months ago...**_

 _Barbara kinda knew where the car keys were. She had overheard some soldiers saying they were with the guns and supplies on the cafeteria. But she had no idea if her dad would figure it out. There was no certainty he would be there so she would hope she would bumped into him in the way._

 _The girl walked quickly, hiding whenever she heard something. She had to go carefully. Even if she had more liberty because she was a kinda doctor in here, she still wasn't allowed to wander around and knew the soldiers wouldn't be too comprehensive about it._

 _It took her a while, because her school was a bit different than this. But eventually she found a kinda map and ran the rest of the way._

 _Just as she reached the doors, a shot rang inside the cafeteria and the girl froze where she was standing. Her heart starting to race with fear.  
_

* * *

Daryl carried a riding chair to the stables. Barbara had told him to not carry heavy weights but she hadn't come and he wasn't sure she was going to, so he didn't care.

He placed it on the... and he groaned. It had been harder than he had expected and felt a pain on his side, but there was no liquid so he was fine.

Then Carol entered the stables.

"You can't," she told him.

"I'm fine," Daryl grumbled without looking at her. Shane had pissed him off. Blake had pissed him off. Barbara hadn't showed up and now his side was hurting, and he couldn't things as easily. He had no time to be nice to Carol.

"Hershel said you needed to heal," she replied as Daryl went to the wall and took some reins off it.

"Yeah, I don't care," he said turning around and going to the horse he was planning to use.

"Well I do. Rick's going out later to follow the trail," Carol informed him, but Daryl was already placing the reins on the horse.

"Yeah well, I ain't gonna sit around and do nothing," he said a bit aggressively.

"No, you're gonna go out there and get yourself hurt even worse," Carol told him but he just ignored her.

"And that girl... Barbara," Carol added. "It's gonna get you hurt too. If she cared she would have told you to stay-"

"That girl, like you called her, had cared more for Sophia that many in our group," he snapped at her a little. He honestly knew why he was defending Barbara if he was so pissed at her.

Carol made a pause as Daryl kept putting the reins on. She hadn't expected him to defend Barbara. And then Carol said:

"We don't know if we're gonna find her, Daryl," that actually made him stop and turned to her. "We don't... I don't."

He walked slowly to her.

"What?"

His blood was boiling at this point. What was Carol saying? There was no point on keep searching for Sophia? She was her goddamn daughter! And then Daryl thought about when he had been lost in the woods when he was only seven. Her mother hadn't cared to go and find him. Hell, she had even noticed. And now Carol was reminding him of that woman.

"Can't lose you too," Carol said softly, her sad eyes begging him. But he had just reached the limit of his patience. Not even Carol's tears calmed him down.

He glared at her dropping the reins. Then he walked to the riding chair, grabbed it and threw it away violently. But the motion pulled hard on his side and he bend, growling at the sudden stab of pain in his side. He pressed his wound, hissing.

"Are you all right?" Carol ran to him but he pushed her away, completely mad.

"Just leave me be!" He yelled at her, walking away angrily. "Stupid bitch!"

Daryl left the barn like a bull out to an arena and almost knocked over Barbara. She stumbled back a little bit startled, but his hand quickly grabbed her shoulder and she regained her balance. The girl watched Daryl with big eyes and placed her hand on her chest.

"Oh my God!"

"Sorry," Daryl grumbled taking his hand away and Barbara frowned, looking at him. He was angry. No, passed that. He was pissed. And he was out of breath and his face was slightly red.

"What's wrong?" She asked frowning and the guy shrugged.

"Nothing," he snapped but he didn't walk away.

The girl raised her eyebrows, clearly not believing him.

"It's time you showed up," he said a bit aggressively.

Barbara smiled at his gruffness, and placed her hand on the back of her shorts, stepping closer to him.

"Yeah, Brett kinda entertained a bit. I was hoping you hadn't leave without me."

She smirked at him and he huffed. He was still upset, but she saw a bit of his anger disappearing.

"Well you're in luck," he said taking her by her shoulder and pulling her inside the stables. Carol had left. "Come on and pick a horse that won't throw us down."

The girl stopped and turned to him quickly.

"What? No! You definitely can't ride a horse," Barbara scolded him. That only seemed to exasperated him more.

"I'm fine, dammit! What's wrong with everybody?! Don't you care that girl is out there?" She's just a damn kid and it's all by herself while we're here losing time!" He snapped at her. She watched his rant and his actions and somehow she knew his tantrum wasn't just about Sophia. She sensed it was rooted into something else but she didn't say nothing she just watched him. Daryl went to pick up the riding chair that he had thrown to the floor but Barbara was there to stop him.

"Stop! You're going to rip off the stitches!" She pulled him up so he wouldn't bend and he glared at her.

"I don't fucking care!" Daryl spat but the girl didn't back off, she just glared back.

"Well I do! We don't have spare thread to stitch you up again if you ripped them, you dumb-ass! No stop yelling at me!"

He growled and kicked the chair as hard as he could, hurting his side. He bent again by the pain and he cursed but unlike Carol, Barbara didn't move to help him. She just watched him with her arms crossed, and her lips set into a line. He huffed, spitting and cursing, bending by the pain, and slowly straightened, his chest rising and lowering violently.

"Are you better now?" She asked lifting an eyebrow and he nodded upset.

"Nah," he spat but he wasn't as angry as before. The girl just rolled her eyes and walked to him.

"Well that's too bad because you're only allowed one kick. Now come here. You're lucky you didn't hurt yourself."

"I said I was fine," Daryl snapped, but now more in a grumpy way instead of aggressive. Barbie knew his anger had passed, at least for now.

Daryl held his shirt up as the girl started undoing his bandage, to check on the stitches and changed them for new ones.

"So what happened, Daryl?" She asked him again, now that he was calmer. "And so to be clear, you don't get to treat me like that whenever you feel like just because someone upset you."

He met her eyes and he saw she was dead serious. She wasn't angry though. He thought about everything that had pissed him off. Shane, Carol, Blake... her, in an indirect way. Shane and Blake for his jokes about his background. Carol for giving up on finding her daughter. And her for being late and kissing that jackass of a boyfriend after he had been a douche bag. He decided to go for the less personal of all those.

"It's Carol. She told me not to go and look for Sophia, that we may not find her," he muttered avoiding her eyes.

Barbara glanced up at him, as she checked on the stitches. She sensed there was more to it so she let him talk.

"Oh."

"She's giving up... she's giving up on her child. And Sophia is waiting for us to come and get her somewhere, alone..."

He moved away as the last part of the bandaged fell off to the ground. The girl rolled it up and tucked it into her bag, before walking to him. His back was to her and she placed a hand on his arm so he would look at her. He turned and smiled lightly.

"We'll find her, Daryl. We will. She's not going to be alone."

He nodded and looked down at her hand. She let go of him and pulled his shirt up again. He buffed but he grabbed it as she examined the stitches. This time something warm spreading along his body and he felt he was lightly blushing. What the hell? He thought, upset. He hadn't react that way before when she had checked on him. Her finger tips touched his skin and he felt it tingling under her fingers.

"Well, you managed to not rip off your stitches. But the skin is irritated. You're healing incredibly fast," she said surprised as she pulled a clean bandage from her bag and placed it around him.

"Yeah, well, Dixon men have thick skin," Daryl quoted Merle and Barbara rolled her eyes, smiling. When her arms wrapped around him to put the bandage on place he felt the urge to step back quickly. Don't be a pussy, he scolded himself. A laugh ringing in his mind. He could almost see his brother, making fun of him. _'What's the matter lil' brother? Can handle a little girl? I thought you were so into them.'_ He frowned angrily but stood still, because she had to do it several times, until the bandage was in each time she rolled the bandage around her back, she pressed her body into his, over and over and over... He felt his face burning and even his hands lightly sweaty. He felt the urge to touch the girl but he would never do it. He would never do anything without her permission. But holly shit, he could feel the warm of her body each time she rolled those damned bandages, and her breath grazing his chest because of his open shirt. It felt like an eternity and still too damn quickly.

"There," Barbara said, quickly stepping away from him, her voice a little bit strained. Maybe it was his imagination, but he thought he saw her blushing. Maybe she had been affected too. Maybe he wasn't imagination her heart beating as fast as his. But when she looked up she looked normal, calm and collected.

"Let's get moving," Daryl said gruffly walking to the horse he had intended to ride. Barbara sighed, shaking her head at his stubbornness.

"Step away from the horse, Dixon. I'm mean it."

He turned to her, glaring.

"We need to find her."

Barbara walked to him, giving him a look.

"Yes, and preferably without you bleeding to death. That may scare her off a little bit."

He glared at her more, remembering Shane's jab and the girl sighed.

"Now come on. There's a lake we can check out. No need of a horse or you dying on me."

Barbara extended her arm with the intention to take his hand but he flinched a bit surprised. The girl stopped, realizing she may have gone too far and pulled her arm to her as if she had been burnt, blushing embarrassed. She didn't say anything and just walked with him outside. Daryl followed her, angry at his reaction. _'What's wrong Darylina? Don't have the balls to even hold her hand?'_

* * *

 ** _Two months ago..._**

 _Barbara just stood in place her heart hammering so hard it almost hurt. But then her brain screamed at her to get moving. What if that was her dad?_

 _The girl ducked and pushed opened the door. A soldier was standing in the middle of the room, his arm raised with a smoking gun. Luckily his back was to her and she could sneak in. She saw a body on the ground and fell her blood freezing. Maybe she shouldn't have entered but she needed to know._

 _She crawled, hidden by the boxes and moved as slowly as she could._

 _But then her foot lightly bumped into a table, full with pilled cans that immediately starting tumbling down._

 _She moved out of the way, almost having a heart attack. She was so screwed._

 _"Get up! Slowly and raised your hands!"_

 _The soldier snapped at her but she recognized that voice. She stood up quickly._

 _"Dad!"_

 _Indeed, William, clad in a stolen soldier's uniform was there pointing at her with a gun until he realized it was her daughter._

 _"Jesus, Barbara, I almost shoot you!" The man snapped with a mix of annoyance and relieved putting the gun down._

 _"There's a heard out there. It's huge and the fences won't make it. We need to leave now!" Barbara said quickly, because they had already lost a lot of time._

 _"I know. I saw it," her father said going to a board where there were a lot of card keys hanging from nails. "Go and keep an eye on the door."_

 _"Look for a Chevrolet pickup," the girl said as she walked to the door quickly and looked out. The corridor was empty but not for long. "We can get out without being spotted through the roof. The back of the school it's practically empty."_

 _"Good thinking," the man said, proud of her daughter's cleverness. He took all the Chevrolet car keys, thought and then walked to the guns. Without thinking he took five rifles. One for each of their kids and Blake. He also grabbed a lonely crossbow. It would be great if they needed to be silent._

 _"Come here, quick," he told Barbara and she ran to his side. He passed her the crossbow which she hung on her back, a hand gun, which she took in the back of her jeans, and a rifle. Then he took a backpack and filled it with food. She got an idea._

 _"We need med supplies!"_

 _She told him and he looked up._

 _"There's no time!"_

 _"I can go quick and get them. See you guys on the roof."_

 _"It's dangerous! Dammit! The people in the gym will riot at any second and that heard it's about to enter...!"_

 _"I need to warn Doctor Stevens! I can't leave him," Barbara told him urgently but firm. His dad gave her a quick look but they didn't got time to pander over it because they heard noises outside._

 _They looked at each other and he grabbed her taking her to the door. They were two soldiers running towards the cafeteria. When they spotted them they both raised their weapons but William and Barbara were quicker. It seemed to happen in slow motion. She didn't think about it. She just reacted. She raised the gun, took aim and shot._

 _Barbara saw as the man she had shot fell to the ground and in that moment her action and the weight of it, hit her. The bile rushed out of her mouth before she could stop it. She bent and threw up on the corridor. She had just killed a man... She had killed..._

 _"Honey, come on," her dad urged her gently. He felt sick her daughter just had to shot someone, but at least he was relieved, she had enough common sense to shoot instead of waiting to be shot._

 _Barbara swiped her mouth on her sleeve and straightened up._

 _"Go get them and go upstairs. It's empty for now," she barely managed to say. "I'll see you there."_

 _"Barbie..."_

 _"Dad, please," she asked him and he looked at her as if he were seeing her for the first time. Her little girl was gone for good. He nodded._

 _"Go and be quick. If you haven't returned in five minutes, I'm coming for you."_

 _The girl nodded and ran in the opposite direction from her father, her rifle firmly clasped in her hands, tears starting to run down her eyes._

* * *

"My dad had a motorcycle you know," Barbara said after a long awkward silence. She finally couldn't take it and just said the first thing she thought about. She had been thinking about her dad since she woke up.

The girl looked at Daryl who looked at her surprised.

"He built it himself."

The guy buffed and smirked a little.

"Now I think you're making your Dad up as you go."

She chuckled and shook her head.

"Nope. He only built that one and only once. I always thought he was going through some middle age crisis. But he was so proud of it. He loved that thing and only let Brett borrow it. No as if I and Elle were going to go near that thing," Barbie scrunched up her nose and Daryl smirked wider.

"What model was?"

The girl frowned, biting her lip and shrugged.

"I don't know. It was big, black and buff-looking..."

Daryl chuckled at that.

"Oh yeah. I had that same one in red," he said sarcastically and Barbara smacked his arm, smiling too.

"Shut up! Do I look like I know anything about motorcycles?"

"Huh, good point," he conceded still smiling a bit sarcastic.

"The motorcycle it's not mine. It was Merle's," Daryl said then and Barbara raised her eyebrows surprised.

"Was he older?"

"Yeah, a couple of years."

"Do you miss him?"

"Sometimes," Daryl shrugged. "That son-of-bitch got me in trouble most of the time and was just an ass but still... We had good times."

Barbara smiled at his honesty. He really missed him. And then she realized, even with the apocalypse going on, she was still really lucky. She had a home and food. She had her siblings, a boyfriend, Hershel and Patricia. And Daryl had loose the only family he had. And they had been in the road for who knows how long. Besides, he didn't look like he was really close to anyone in his group, but Carol. At least that she had seen.

"You have a brother too, don't you?" Daryl asked her and she looked up to him.

"Yes, Brett. He can be an ass too sometimes."

Daryl smirked.

"Yeah?"

"Yes, but he's fine. He just teases me a lot but he cares. This morning he found out I'd been training with you and wasn't happy."

Not hard to imagine, Daryl thought a bit angrily. Probably Bret didn't her precious little sister near him.

"Why? He thinks I'm gonna rape you too?"

The girl turned to him wide-eyed and stopped surprised at his comment.

"What? No!"

"Why not? Everyone else in your family thinks that. Wasn't that why Hershel came by. To make sure I wasn't..."

"Actually, Hershel told me he was sure I could kick your ass if needed," the girl interrupted his angry rant. She knew they had been judging Daryl way too hard. His looks didn't scream trust exactly, but he was always thinking people considered him the worst and she wanted him to stop. Why, she had lost count of the times she had defended him.

Daryl stopped at that and frowned.

"Yeah, right. I wanna see that."

"You might, if you make me angry," the girl teased him and she saw a faint of a smile peaking on his face. "And FYI, Bret wasn't worried because of you. He was angry because... because he felt he hadn't been able to protect us. He didn't want me to feel as I need to learn how fight."

"But you do. You cannot take things for granted anymore," Daryl said looking at her, his anger now gone. He understood where Barbara's brother was coming. If he had had a sister, he would also had wanted to protect her to the point where she didn't need to learn to fight, but the world wasn't safe anymore. You couldn't just assume you could protect everyone all the time. Sophia being missing proved that. They needed to be stronger, fight better. And he admired the hell out of Barbara for being so persistent about it.

Barbara smiled up to him.

"That's why I said to him and he got it. He was going to teach Elle how to shoot better."

"Elle?"

"My sister, the blonde girl."

Daryl nodded. He had seen her with Patricia when they asked Rick if they could joined them for gun training. He had thought she had been staring at him a bit curiously, but he dismissed it.

"That's good. You're bother is any good at shooting?"

The girl nodded.

"He always went with my Dad and me to hunt. He was really good... but I'm way better."

Daryl smirked at her cheekiness and chuckled.

"Show off, much?"

"I'm just being honest," the girl said with a smile, and shrugging. They kept walking but now the silence wasn't awkward anymore. And Daryl could help but stared at her a bit. She was the biggest contradiction he had ever met and he liked it. He could never imagined her holding a gun or a rifle for that matter. He could even imagine the rifle knocking her down but then he remembered when she had killed those walkers and then pulled that gun. She looked so tiny and even delicate. The way she moved was more like prancing than walking, but she had seen that intense fierceness when she had been in danger. And it was attractive as hell. The fact that her boyfriend had just told him to stay away just added to the feeling of wanting to be closer.

She sensed his eyes on her and she smiled up at him before looking ahead again, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks but her smile just got wider. He smirked, feeling his confidence increasing and he extended his hand to take hers.

"Look, there it is!" She told him, raising her arm to point and he closed his hand on a fist quickly and pulling it back to his side. She didn't even notice he had tried to take her hand and the clumsiness of it, made him blushed embarrassed.

She turned to him and he looked ahead, trying to look nonchalant. The lake looked like a green mirror, surrounded by grass and moss. It was secluded thanks to the trees and there was a dock on their right.

"I found this place after we came here and I just loved it," the girl told him as she walked straight to the dock. He followed her. She left her crossbow over the wood plank and then pulled her gun from the back of her shorts. Daryl froze, standing in the middle of the dock, staring at the gun offended and hurt.

"You still I'm gonna jumped on you?" He snapped at her and she looked up startled and a bit confused.

"What?"

"That damn gun. You still think I'm gonna try to do something-"

"No, Daryl, I swear," she quickly said interrupting him, and raising her hands. The guy just glared at her.

"Then why the damn gun?"

"Because out here it's not safe," Barbara shrugged, looking at the trees with apprehension. "Or don't you remember a walker almost rip my throat out? I bring it to defend myself against those things, not against you. I trust you."

He understood her motives and it made perfect sense so he felt like an ass.

The girl turned around and sat on the dock, her legs hanging from it and she took her boots and socks off, dipping her feet on the cool water. Barbara then looked up to him. She saw him standing awkwardly in the middle of the dock and she patted the place next to her.

"Come on, join me."

Slowly he walked to the edge and like her; he dropped his crossbow to the side and then sat next to her. He didn't took his shoes off, thought. He didn't think they would smell that nice and didn't want to make her uncomfortable. But that meant that he had to held his legs up so his feet wouldn't touch the water.

"Come on, take them off," Barbara said startling him. It was as if she had just read his mind. "It's nice the water. Perfect for this heat."

He looked at her and she just raised her eyebrows. So he quickly took his boots off, and threw them behind him, making sure they were near her and dipped his feet as well.

Barbara sighed and when he turned he saw she was looking around, sadly.

"I found this lake just after my dad died," she confessed him. "I lost my mother and then him... I just wanted to run away and this was the closest thing I could find. Here it's so calm. So quiet."

And it was, Daryl had to agree. He liked that about this place. Not noise other than the nature's. It reminded him when he had left his home and wandered off to the woods. Each time they're parents fight, or her mother was too drunk that she passed out, or after his father had hit him. He ran where everything was quiet. Where couldn't hear nothing but the crickets. But he didn't want to think about that. It had been too long, and he wasn't alone, he reminded himself.

"What happened to them?" He found himself asking. He wasn't sure if Barbara would share anything to him but he could try. He wouldn't judge her.

The girl looked up to him and then away.

"What happens to everyone eventually I guess."

She sighed and before she could realize she was speaking.

"We left Atlanta just before everything got ugly. It was late. My sister and I just had returned from a party. Got no idea what was going on but my dad was packing like crazy. He packed one car with supplies and gave them to the... to our staff," she said tentatively. She was almost expecting a nasty joke from Daryl but he didn't say anything. So she just kept going. "And then we stayed alone. My brother had gone to the back for our rifles but some walkers got in and we didn't notice on time. They had him cornered and we heard him scream. And my mom, she didn't hesitate one moment. She ran after him and tried to help him but... she didn't saw there was one on the floor and he bit her on her ankle. And I still can remembered clearly her screams."

Daryl looked at her but didn't say anything. What could he say? He had loved her mother to an extent. He had felt her lose because from his parent she was the one who cared a bit. When she wasn't drunk or high, which didn't happen often, but still she had cared for him, at least in the beginning. But Daryl couldn't imagine her, throwing herself in front of a walker to save him. She would probably be just too drunk to do it.

"My dad killed the one who bite her... and I killed the other," Daryl turned to look at her a bit taken aback. "Didn't think about it. I just saw red. I walked to that thing, grabbed a kitchen knife and just stabbed it. They looked at me as if I were one of those things, you know."

Daryl knew. When all that had started people got confused. That's why most of them were gone. They saw the walkers like they were still alive or they were just dead afraid of them. Just took them out with bullets. But Daryl and Merle didn't waste time. They did shoot them but in more than one occasion they just grabbed their knives and stabbed them. And people had looked at them as if they had just stabbed someone alive. Even now, his group still needed guns to kill walkers.

"You did what you had to do," Daryl said and she turned to him. "Not everyone has the balls to do it."

She smiled a bit but it was sad, and she just nodded.

"I stitched her up. I stopped the bleeding. But it was too late. She died and my dad took her and..." The girl shook her head, and her voice broke. Just remembering that day messed her up. She hated everything about it. She had lost her home, and her mother, in just the blink of an eye.

Barbara cleared her throat, blinking back her tears. She wouldn't cry in front of Daryl or anyone. Never.

"Then we tried to found Blake's mom but... she had been bitten and turned already," she continued and Daryl frowned. He was far from feel sympathy for that guy but he knew nobody deserved to lose a dear one like that. Without a goodbye.

"And then we left. My dad had talked to Hershel before the communications fell and told him we were coming. We had to practically surround Atlanta because all the highways were full and then we stopped on the town's high school. It had been turned into a safe zone. We thought we could just stop by... but they didn't let us go."

"Why?"

The girl shrugged.

"They wanted our supplies, I think. They took them and our car and made us stay. There were a lot of people in there. And then they found out I was a med student. They had adapted the infirmary hall into a make-shift hospital and I kinda worked there for a while. I attended some wounded people the soldiers brought up. And that's where I learned to perform a surgery. I did like five, or six. Can't remember. But when they took me, they hit my dad, and Bret and Blake. They wanted to leave and made a plan and everything." She couldn't help the little smile, remembering her dad's conviction. She looked up to Daryl who had been watching her closely.

"And then the high school got overrun."

* * *

 ** _Two months ago..._**

 _Barbara's ears were buzzing and she barely could see where she was going because of her tears._

 _She had killed a man. She had killed him in cold blood. She, who had intended to be a doctor. Who had sworn to protect and preserve life... just took one. She felt sick to her stomach. But she kept running. But did she deserved to survive? Maybe she didn't anymore. She taken one life and had no right. But why then she kept running. Why she wanted to take the meds and go back to her family and go out. She shouldn't. She should stay back with the sick people and try to help them out._

 _When she entered she almost bumped in to Doctor Stevens._

 _"Barbara, Jesus, I've looking for...! What are doing with that?!"_

 _His eyes opened wide as he stared at the rifle and crossbow._

 _"You need to come with me now! There are thousands of those things outside and the fence it's not going to hold!"_

 _"I know I saw... but I can't leave my patients... we can't leave them," he glared at the girl and the guilt was even greater._

 _"I'm sorry," she passed by him through the office where her things were. She grabbed her backpack and threw her med books inside even if they weighted her down. She hung her in her back, feeling a bit buffy thanks to the crossbow. When she left the room and went to the meds storage Doctor Stevens followed her._

 _"Where do you think you're going?"_

 _She didn't answer, she just started grabbing bandages, and pills, and antibiotics, and alcohol and put them in her backpack._

 _"Those are not yours...!"_

 _"Not all of them," she snapped back. "They took our supplies, now we're taking them back."_

 _She sighed and stepped to him but he just stepped back._

 _"If you stay, you're not going to survive. And our patients won't make it out of here. It's just question of time before the fences give out and then the soldiers are going to leave. They won't help them. And those things are going to eat them."_

 _"It's not what you're asking?" The man snapped at her. "For me to leave with you and leave them behind."_

 _The girl shook her head and handed him a bottle with... The man looked up to her shocked._

 _"I know... but we can helped them. The least we can do is to make sure their deaths are not painful."_

 _The man's hard face slowly crumbled and tiredness and sadness crept over._

 _"I can't do it, though."_

 _"I can't either," Barbara admitted. "So just give them away. Let them make their choice."_

 _The man slowly nodded and she followed him to their first patients' room. Most of them were sleeping._

 _"What's going on?" The man without leg who had asked Barbara to kill him, asked afraid, looking at her weapons._

 _"The school is going to be overrun. And we cannot move you all."_

 _The room fell silence._

 _"Don't let us be eaten alive," the man without leg implored and the doctor nodded, giving him a pill. The man looked up at doctor Stevens and then at Barbara and smiled slowly._

 _"Thank you."_

 _He took it quickly and then laid back. They gave the pills away to the ones who had lost a leg or just couldn't stand up. They did the same in the other rooms. Two of them implored to not leave them behind but they had to._

 _And then just as they ran out of pills the shots were heard louder and closer, there were screams and panic people flooded the corridor._

 _"We have to get out of here now!" The girl shouted at the doctor, and taking his arm he pulled him out of the corridor. Then they heard shots inside the school._

 _"Good Heavens," the doctor said looking behind them, and the girl quickly pulled the gun out of her jeans and passed it to him._

 _"Here!"_

 _The man took it surprised and followed the girl._


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

The Case of the Missing Man

...

 _Two months ago..._

 _It was total chaos. Gunshots could be heard as well as growls and screams. People pushed past them, some of them bitten, some of them shooting behind. Something grabbed Barbara and she elbowed it away, without looking if it was a person or not. Just as they entered another corridor a woman was running to them, but two walkers grabbed her first. Barbara shot one, but the other bit on her neck and ripped her throat. Her screams joined in the cacophony and the girl almost threw up again. She shot the walker before he could eat the woman, but it was too late, she was going to die anyway._

 _"Come on," Barbara grabbed Stevens elbow and made him move. The woman pressed her neck, crying and walked to them, begging them to help her._

 _"I'm sorry, we can't. We can't," the man told her as they ran away._

 _They entered the corridor where the stairs was but it was full of soldiers, people screaming and fighting and walkers._

 _Barbie couldn't see her dad, her siblings nor Blake, but she saw Michael, carrying Christopher. They were among some soldiers trying to fend off the walkers, but soon they ran out of bullets and the corpses bit into their flesh. Christopher was crying as his dad ran between the crowd and spotted Barbara. He ran to her._

 _"Shit," Michael said before a walker threw at him, barely stopping him with his free hand. Christopher screamed, as Michael tried to hold the walker away from him and his son. Barbara raised the rifle and shot the walker, but it only attracted some of them._

 _"Let's the hell out of here!" Barbara told them, dragging the dumbfounded doctor away, followed by Michael and Christopher. They ran to the corridor they had just exited, followed by five walkers, but they seemed to attract more, the group growing._

 _"Michael, where's my dad, and my siblings and...?" Barbara asked the man as they ran. Michael glanced at her, holding Christopher closer._

 _"They made it upstairs. All of them. I saw them. We got separated but they told me to find another way up. They are waiting for us in the roof."_

 _Barbara nodded, shooting a walker that entered the hallway in front of them. The corpse fell twice dead, and they passed it, without even flinching._

 _"We need to find some stairs," the girl told the men and Doctor Stevens nodded._

 _"I know another way up," Doctor Stevens told her as they ran. They bumped into the woman who had been bitten who again asked them for help._

 _"Oh my... Come on," Barbara cursed while taking the woman by the arm and dragging her with them across the corridor. But as they entered another hallway full of classrooms, two walkers came out of one, grabbing the woman. She screamed and Stevens shot one of them, but missed, hitting it on the cheek. And the other took the opportunity to bite into the woman's face, tearing up her nose._

 _The walker shot, however grabbed Michael. The man pushed him away from his son and Barbara shot him. The man, however looked at his arm and then at the girl and the doctor. The walker had not bitten him, but he had some nasty and deep scratches._

 _"Shit!"_

 _Michael shook his head and flicked his wrist._

 _"Let's move!"_

 _Barbara barely felt a thing as Doctor Stevens dragged her away. Her ears buzzed as they heard the screams of the woman being torn apart and Christopher cries, but they couldn't look back. Also Michael had been infected. He wouldn't make it. Christopher would be left alone._

 _They ran across people and soldiers being eaten up, but they didn't stop. They shot the walkers; they found and didn't stop until they reached the stairs that were a bit empty. Not a good sign._

 _They crossed an empty corridor and when they turned around the corner three walkers jumped on them. They turned around and ran the other way, but a bigger group had followed them, blocking their path. So they ran into the closest room, closing the door behind them. They were in the laboratories and there were more doors in there. Maybe they could leave without being noticed. Michael grabbed Barbie's shoulder and gestured to the doors, probably having the same idea. The girl nodded and she and the doctor walked to the doors._

 _Meanwhile the door they had come from was shaking and growls could be heard on the other side. Michael noticed there was another door on the other side. So as Barbara and the doctor picked one he approached the other one. This locked on the inside so he unlocked it and opened it just as Doctor Stevens did the same on the other one._

 _Before Michael could react, the door he had opened was pushed and walkers burst into the room. The man screamed taken by surprise and tried to run back, but he was held by several hands and one of the monsters ripped out his throat._

 _"No!" Barbara screamed, running to rescue Christopher but three heard her and were coming to her. Just as she put them out, Michael turned to cover his son and put it on the floor. But he dropped him so the walker entering and passing by reached him before Barbara and threw at him._

 _The little boys scream filled the room and Barbara stood there, too horrified to do anything. She felt like throwing up, like fainting, but then a strong hand closed on her shoulder. Panic filled her until she realized it was Doctor Stevens, dragging her away from the room and Michael and Christopher._

 _They entered another room and could escape to the corridor. Most of the workers were gone but a couple followed them. Barbara just ran out of instinct. She still felt sick for what just happened. She couldn't help them. Michael had trusted her and she let him and Christopher died. If she had been faster he could have gotten him._

 _Their way was cut by more walkers._

 _"Shit! Okay, they're just three!" Barbara told him and both shot. Two felt down and they ran to the other. Barbara shot it down and they kept running. They dodged more of those things that came out of classrooms alerted by the noise, but the group behind them was just growing. Barbara turned around and shot one down. Stevens did the same._

 _Another walker exited a classroom and Barbara raised her rifle, but nothing came out. She had run out of ammo. She stepped back as the thing reached out for her._

 _"No, no...!" Stevens shot the walker down and they kept running._

 _"Don't you have more ammo?" He asked her. She shook her head. Her dad had taken the ammo._

 _Another two closed on them. Stevens shot one and the other threw at Barbara. She raised the rifle to stop it, but the weight of the walker pushed her to the wall. Doctor Stevens walked to her, shooting it, but the biggest group behind them had caught up._

 _"Shit," the man said and then looked down at the girl. He grabbed her by the arm and hid her a bit behind a trophy case and his body. "Go down that corridor! It must be empty. There's a door there that goes to the roof!"_

 _"Wait, where are you going?!" the girl told him breathless, starting to panic. She clutched his wrist. Surely he wasn't going to leave her alone and without ammo. "Doctor Stevens..."_

 _"I'm going to surround the building. Taking them off your back. We'll meet on the roof, just be ready to open the door for me. Oh, and my name is Nate... so you know."_

 _As she shook her head, he ran his fingers down her cheek. Before she could say anything else, he turned and ran to the other corridor, yelling and shooting those down, attracting them away from her._

 _She watched terrified as those things followed him, disappearing on the corridor, but one lingered behind, spotting her. She ran away quickly. Maybe she could fire her rifle, but at least she could do some damage with it. Reaching the door Stevens had told her she hung the rifle on her back to open the lock. But then a growl made her turn in time to stop a walker from biting into her face. She held it away, but she wasn't strong enough. She wouldn't be able to hold it for much she could reach for the hunting knife in her backpack, or the girl looked right into the decaying face and milky eyes and determination and her survival instinct kicked in. She wouldn't go down like this. Not today anyway. She managed to raise her leg and with a hearty scream kicked the walker away, who stumbled back. She couldn't fire the rifle, but she could use it. Barbara raised it and pushed it against the walker's face. He hit the wall and the barrel went through his eye socket. As soon as the rifle hit the wall, the walker tumbled down, taking the rifle with it._

 _Barbara looked at it breathless, a bit proud, but then more growls sounded not that far away. She looked up and saw three more by the corner. She didn't have time. She swung open the door to the roof and closed it behind her placing the lock as it shook under the weight of the walkers crashing against it._

 _The girl then turned around, her heart racing. It was dark, she was practically defenseless. She fumbled with her backpack and pulled out her hunting knife. She had never used one, but it was better than nothing. And she wouldn't risk the crossbow._

 _Barbara squatted and walked through the practically empty roof. The snipers and soldier were gone and the fence had broken down. Dozens of those things were on the front courtyard. Barbara gulped and turned around. There, she stopped it. Two figures on the door where she had told her dad she would meet them. Her heart started racing and she approached quickly in case it wasn't her father._

 _"Barbie?"_

 _They had spotted her, but it didn't matter. It was her dad and Blake. She sighed, a sickening wave of relief hitting her._

 _"Dad!" She threw herself at the man, who clutched her daughter for dear life._

 _"I was so worried... I thought..."_

 _"I know," the girl sobbed lightly clutching to him._

 _She then pulled away and then hugged Blake too tightly, then she kissed the pants out of him. But then it hit her who it was missing and she pulled away, feeling her heart racing once again._

 _"Where are Brett and Ellie?"_

 _Her dad raised a hand._

 _"Take it easy, they're back there. We were just waiting for you..." His dad voice broke and he pulled her to him again. "Jesus, why the hell did you have to go like that? I've been worried sick... When the stairs were ran over... But you did it, you did it."_

 _Despite the horror, she heard the pride in her dad's voice. He rocked her back and forth and then let her go._

 _"Let's get the hell out of here."_

 _"Wait, we need to wait for Doctor Stevens." She stopped them._

 _Both looked at the girl exasperated._

 _"Barbie, there's no time."_

 _"We cannot leave him behind!" The girl protested, looking at both men, indignantly. "He saved my life. I wouldn't have made it without him!"_

 _"Barbie..."_

 _She shook her head at Blake and looked up at her dad._

 _"Dad, please..."_

 _He stared at her and her determinate face. She had blood on her face and arms. She had made it. And he could see it in her face._

 _"Fine."_

 _She explained where he had run to and they determined that the door they'd been guarding it was the only escape he was going to get. Will pushed himself to the door ready to open it and close it as quickly as possible. Barbara took the extra rifle her father had and she and Blake positioned themselves in front of it, ready to shoot anything that came through it._

 _Barbara was just reloading her rifle when they heard thumps on the other side. They turned to look at each other and then they heard screams._

 _"HELP! HELP! PLEASE!"_

 _"It's Doctor Stevens!" Barbara cried, stopping her recharging and reading the rifle. Will opened the door lightly and the Doctor's face popped out. He had his cheek ripped out and it was clear he was being eaten from behind._

 _Barbara screamed and Blake caught her before she could run to him. William tried to close it, but the doctor's body was in the doorway and the walkers were trying to push past it. They were too many and they still had to get downstairs. Not even Brett and Ellie were downstairs._

 _"Go! I'll catch up!" Will yelled after them._

 _"No! We're not leaving you!" Barbara pushed Blake away and walked to her father who glared at her, stopping her._

 _"If I leave now, no of us will make it!" He yelled exasperated._

 _"You won't make it alone!" Barbara cried. Will smiled sadly at her despite their situation._

 _"Here," he reached back and pulled a gun. It wasn't big, maybe a revolver she wasn't sure. He put it in her daughter's hand and when he did, he slipped his ring out and let it fall on her palm._

 _She looked up to him, her eyes watering and he felt his heart crushing._

 _"Go! Tell them I'll be right behind!"_

 _Blake went to her, grabbed her arm and dragged her away._

 _"Count five minutes!" William yelled after them. "If I'm not there by then, or there's too many of those things you leave!"_

 _Barbara looked up at him and she understood this was it. She was not going to see him again. She knew that, and he knew that._

 _"I love you Daddy," she told him crying harder and let herself being dragged away from Blake._

 _They crossed the roof quickly and saw Brett and Ellie waiting by the fire stairs for them._

 _"Go! Go!" Blake yelled at them and Brett nodded dragging Ellie down._

 _"Wait, where's Dad?" she said scared as they ran down._

 _"He'll catch up. He's right behind," Blake said._

 _Brett looked up to Barbara and her expression told him everything. He swallowed and nodded, running faster. A window burst opened while they were going down and two walkers reached out to Brett and Ellie. The girl screamed, but before Brett could do anything, Barbara quickly shot them down._

 _"Keep going!" she yelled._

 _When they finally reached the floor the yard wasn't so empty anymore. Barbara shot another two and Brett the one that Blake missed. They ran into a random van and Brett tried all the buttons in all the cars until one opened it. They climbed in quickly. Barbara sat on the copilot seat and Blake pulled Ellie, on the back with him, closing the door quickly._

 _Brett put the keys on the engine and was about to start it but Barbara stopped him._

 _"Dad said five minutes."_

 _Brett turned to her and then looked out of the window. Both knew he only had said that so they would leave, but still they could wait for him a bit more._

 _"What?" Ellie asked, confused._

 _"Alright, then I'm going to open the gates," Brett said, leaving the car and Barbara followed him quickly._

 _"I'm going to clear his path, if anything comes get us," she told Blake and Ellie before leaving the minivan._

 _As his brother opened the gate, she shot two more walkers that appeared on the corner. She recharged quickly just as two more approached Brett from the outside. She barely shot them before they could reach her brother's hand._

 _He opened the gate finally and they pushed the doors open just as more walkers came in from the woods and a considerable amount surrounded the building from the inside._

 _"We have to go now!" He yelled at her and she nodded._

 _They ran to the van and Barbara had barely closed the door when her brother stepped on the gas, rolling over a couple of walkers._

 _As they left the school in the middle of the night, Barbara couldn't see a thing on the roof nor hear anything. Not a single sign their father was alright and was on his way. He was gone._

 _The girl looked down and pulled her father's ring out of her jean's pocket. She slid it on her finger as Ellie started to cry on the back seat, because their father hadn't made it. Elliot winced when he heard her, but kept his blank face on, concentrated on the road, and on evading those who could make it out of the school as well._

 _They reached Hershel's farm the next morning._

* * *

Barbara hung her head, her fingers fidgeting with the ring on her finger. Despite his father always wearing it on his pinky, it was too big for her slender fingers, and she had to use it on her index.

"He gave me his ring and his gun and then..." She took a deep breath. "I turned around. Went down the stairs as I heard him still trying to keep those things out."

When Barbara finished, she just stared down at the water and Daryl didn't know what to say. One, because he hadn't expected her to tell him that, but also because he had never had a loving family. His folks were quite the opposite and hadn't resent their deaths much. So instead of saying something stupid he would regret he reached and awkwardly took her hand that was resting on the dock. She turned to him so quickly that he felt the urge to let it go but he didn't. He stared back and gave a gentle squeeze to her hand. Barbara slowly smiled.

"He would be proud, I think," Daryl told her softly and a bit awkwardly. "He would be proud of you taking care of your sister and being as strong as you are."

The girl looked at him, surprised once again with him. For being this big, arrogant and cursing man, he was really something else deep down. It was just a cover, a shield to protect himself from the world. But when he let his guard down, like when he brought that flower to Carol, or like right now, she had discovered he was one of the sweetest guys she had ever met. She didn't tell him, though. She would never have. So she just grinned up at him and scooted over closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

Daryl stiffened a bit startled at first, but then he slowly relaxed. He looked at the lake and pressed his cheek to her head.

"And your dad?" Barbara asked softly. She almost did it without thinking. And for a moment wished she could take it back. Daryl had stiffened next to her and she could almost see him standing up and leaving. She knew he wasn't the type person who shared personal details about his life. But he didn't move. And she decided that if he wanted to ignore her question, she wouldn't push him.

"He died before all this," he said almost quietly, after a long pause, surprising her. "He had a heart attack for all the booze and the shit he took. And nobody was there with him."

Barbara didn't look up. She had the feeling that if she stared at him, he would shut down. She hadn't expected for him to open like he just had, and didn't want to ruin it. She squeezed his hand that was still holding hers.

"He hurt you," she said quietly. His shoulders once again stiffened and she didn't look up.

At that moment Daryl knew she had seen the scars. And he felt ashamed. For a moment, he just sat there frozen. He felt the urge to just stand up and leaving. He didn't need her, from all people, pitying him. Feeling sorry for him. Hell, she didn't even look at him, but she didn't pull away. She was giving him his space so to speak. He felt she wouldn't mind if he didn't answer. He didn't want to so he was beyond surprise when he did.

"He hurt everybody," his answer came in a bit aggressive though he tried to sound nonchalant. "He was a good-for-nothing drunk. Never counted on him," he shrugged as if his abuse and rejection had caused no impact on him.

Barbie finally straightened up and looked up to him. He stood still, wary of her reaction, but her eyes weren't sad but shiny. She smiled softly.

"His loss. You're a good man, Daryl."

Her reaction did take him by surprise. There wasn't pity in her eyes; actually, she looked more like proud. Proud for what, he would never know.

"Nah, I ain't," he said and pulled his hand out of hers but he didn't leave.

Barbara watched him closely. He's hung up head, his hunched shoulders and she felt the urge to hug him. But she didn't. She reached for his hand again instead.

"You're an ass, that's different," she teased him with a light smirk. "But you are a good man," she emphasize the last words but, Daryl shook his head.

"I hurt Carol earlier. I called her things I shouldn't have. I yelled at you... I'm sorry."

The honesty in his voice made something in her rib cage move, like a fluttering movement. Her smile grew wider and she placed her free hand under his chin so he would turn to her. He looked up to her a bit surprised and the girl smirked.

"Apology accepted. But next time Dixon; I'm kicking your butt."

He buffed but couldn't help but smile. The odd feeling in his stomach made him impossible to stop smiling.

"As if you could."

Barbara chuckled.

"I totally can. Blindfolded," she said, wanting to have the last word and learned quickly to place a light kiss on his cheek. He jerked his head at her, watching her, dumbstruck but she let go of his hand and pulled her feet out of the water as if nothing had happened.

She turned around and stood up, taking her gun, placing it on the back of her shorts and then grabbing her crossbow and boots. Daryl did the same, putting on his boots and tying them as Barbara walked back to the shore barefoot.

She then noticed something on the edge of the lake and smiled, turning to the man.

"Daryl, look! Your flower!" The guy looked up as he stood up and following the direction of her finger he saw the white Cherokee rose on a small bush next to the water.

She walked to it and he followed her. She raised a hand and softly rubbed the petals as he stood behind her.

"I gave it to Carol," he told her, his eyes now fixed on her. Even form that distance he could still smell the lavender in her head.

"Why?" She asked curiously, but she quickly added. "I know it's not my business, but..." "There's this Indian legend about some tribe mothers that lost their children," he said before she could finish and she turned to him, listening attentively. He felt a little coy under her stare, but he kept going. He told her almost exactly what he had told Carol and she smiled at him softly.

"That was real nice of you," she said and he just shrugged, hanging the crossbow on his back.

"Is nothing."

"Yes, it is," Barbara replied, her eyes fixed on him. "Like I said, you have your heart on the right place...," she said, tapping lightly his chest, "but you're a jackass, sometimes."

She teased him lightly, scrunching up her nose and he chuckled, shaking his head.

"Shut up."

She put on her boots and before leaving they turned and watched the flowers one last time.

"We're going to find Sophia."

She told Daryl and he looked at her and her confident smile. He smirked back and nodded.

"Yeah. We will."

As they were leaving, Daryl more confident this time reached and took her hand once again. The girl looked up surprised, but smiled softly, blushing lightly. She knew this was different. This wasn't just comfortable and that she shouldn't, but she couldn't help herself and didn't let go of his hand.

Daryl hated to admit that his heart was beating way too fast, but it was. This girl was messing with his mind big time. But he didn't mind it one bit. He wanted her, he finally admitted it to himself. He wanted her badly. And maybe he didn't deserved her. She was way too good for a redneck like him, even if the world had ended but he would be damned if he didn't try.

* * *

"You see it?"

Daryl asked, walking ahead of them.

"See what?" Carol asked confused. She followed him to an overgrown bush next to a lake and she saw what she was pointing at. There were Cherokee's roses. They walked until they were in front of them.

"We'll find her," he assured her.

Barbara stayed a bit behind them. She had the feeling Carol didn't like her very much, but Daryl had asked her to come with them.

"Hey, I'm sorry about what happened this morning," he told her softly.

"You wanted to look for her," Carol smiled lightly, looking at him and then at the flowers. She made a pause and then turned to him. "Why? This whole time I've wanted to ask you."

Daryl turned to her.

"'Cause I think she's still out there," he said firmly and then looked away at Barbara. She was standing a bit back but smiled at him encouragingly.

"Truth is, what else I got to do?" He added and Carol turned to him, really touched by his consideration. He really looked convinced, hopeful, even and the woman couldn't help but notice the glances he was giving Barbara.

Carol had to admit she didn't like Barbara very much because she thought she didn't care for Daryl. That she just was trying to get whatever she wanted out of him and screw him if he got hurt or something. But, she had started to notice a change in him. She could see that Daryl cared for Barbara, and she cared for him. Maybe more than they realized. And also, the girl had been looking for her daughter. Without asking anything in return, putting herself in danger. Still, she had to ask.

Carol turned to Barbara acknowledging her.

"And why are you helping? You don't even know her," if it came a bit aggressive, it wasn't Carol's intention. Daryl raised his eyebrows, but Barbara didn't take it personally. She walked to them before answering.

"Well... I lost my mother when all this started. My brother was in trouble and she went to help him, without thinking, she just went and got herself a bit. And just like that, I lost her. My sister and my brother did too. I don't want that for Sophia... or you. And you have to believe Carol," the girl smiled, hope shining in her eyes. "We will find her. I know it's hard with all this bad stuff happening but I do believe so."

Carol smiled at her.

"Thank you," she said wholeheartedly.

Barbara nodded and smiled back. Then Carol stepped up until she was in front of the flower and held onto one of his petals gently.

"We'll find her. We will," then she looked at Daryl and then at Barbara.

"I see it."

Barbara looked at Daryl and he smiled softly at her. They would do it. After all, they were just that. Lost children, trying to avoid Sophia would end up as lost as they were.

* * *

They walked back to the farm, all in a better mood. This time Daryl didn't reach for Barbara's hand because of Carol, but he kept glancing at her, smirking at her when she met his eyes, and she smirked back. And if her daughter weren't still be missing, Carol would have found funny that Daryl, from all people, was acting like a love struck teenager.

They approached the house and saw Maggie and Glenn sitting on the front steps and Patricia, Ellie and Carl were playing checkers on the porch. Andrea and T-Dog were also walking to the house.

"You haven't seen Rick?" T-Dog asked Glenn.

"He went off with Hershel," Glenn replied, looking at them.

"We were supposed to leave a couple hours ago," Andrea said.

"Yeah, you were," Daryl yelled at them as they rejoined the group. Maggie and Glenn stood up. "What the hell?"

"Rick told us he was going out," Carol replied and Daryl looked at her before turning to the group.

"Damn it! Isn't anybody taking this seriously?!" He snapped exasperated. "We got us a damn trail!"

He turned around and saw Shane coming to them, carrying a bag.

"Oh, here we go," he said, walking with the man. They all turned to Shane and Barbara crossed her arms. There was something in Shane that she just didn't like. Something in him, gave her the creeps.

As Shane got closer Daryl noticed he was carrying their guns that were supposed to be kept away.

"What's all this?" Daryl demanded.

"You with me, man?" Shane asked him, handing him a rifle.

"Yeah," Daryl quickly replied, taking the rifle and taking off the safety.

"Time to grow up," Shane told the group, walking to the house.

"You already got yours?" Shane asked Andrea as she T-Dog and Daryl followed him.

"Yeah. Where's Dale?" Andrea asked him, not sure about his idea.

"He's on his way," Shane replied, not very happy about it. Then he handed a gun to T-Dog.

"Thought we couldn't carry them," T-Dog said, watching Shane confused.

"We can and we have to," Shane replied firmly. "Look, it was one thing sitting around here picking daisies when we thought this place was supposed to be safe. But now we know it ain't." He told everyone there, even Ellie and Patricia who looked just confused. Then Shane walked to Glenn.

"How about you, man? You gonna protect yours?" She asked him handing him a gun and he looked at Maggie before taking it.

"That's it," Shane said smiling. Then he turned to Maggie. "Can you shoot?"

"Can you stop?" She snapped back. "You do this, you hand out these guns, my dad will make you leave tonight."

"We have to stay, Shane," Carl told him, walking to him.

"What is this?" The Lori walked in, watching all the guns surprised and upset.

"We ain't going anywhere, okay?" Shane assured Carl putting the bag of guns on the ground and then stood up, facing the group. "Now look, Hershel, he's just gotta understand. Okay? He- Well, he's gonna have to. Now we need to find Sophia. Am I right? Huh?" The he went Carl and knelt in front of him, handing him a gun. "Now I want you to take this."

Daryl felt Barbara's glare and he turned to her. The girl was furious.

"He's right," Daryl told her and she just deepened her glare.

"No, he's not," she snapped.

"You take it, Carl, and you keep your mother safe. You do whatever it takes. You know how. Go on, take the gun and do it."

Lori stepped up, pushing Carl back.

"Rick said no guns," she said angrily to him. "This is not your call. This is not your decision to make." "Oh shit!" T-Dog suddenly exclaimed, and they all turned to him and what he was seeing.

There were Rick, Hershel and Bret, walking out of the woods, each pushing a walker in a snare pole. Blake was walking in front of them as bait, guiding them to the barn.

"What is that?" Shane mumbled and then ran to whole group quickly followed him.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shane shouted as they reached them.

"Shane, just back off," Rick shouted back.

"Why do your people have guns?" Hershel demanded angrily.

"Are you kidding me? You see? You see what they're holding onto?" Shane yelled at Hershel, surrounding them, as a rabid dog, pointing at the growling walkers.

"I see who I'm holding onto," Hershel yelled back.

"No, man, you don't," Shane yelled back still surrounded them to walk in front of the barn. "They're not people. They're dead!" He kept yelling at the group. "Ain't gonna feel nothing for them 'cause all they do, they kill! These things right here, they're the things that killed Amy. They killed Otis. They're gonna kill all of us if we don't...!"

"Shane, stop!" Rick yelled, while trying to keep a hold on the walker who was getting excited because of all the people there.

But Barbara was done with him. She saw Hershel, Rick and Bret could barely hold onto the walkers and this asshole had already upset her uncle too much. She stomped past Daryl and walked to him, pushing back Shane. The man stumbled a little, not expecting her to step up.

"Stop it, you hear me! Stop it!" She yelled at him, furiously. "Who the hell do you think you are? This isn't your damn business! It's his farm!" She pointed Hershel furiously. "Not yours!"

Shane looked over at the girl a bit impressed and would find the situation a bit funny if he wasn't tired of all.

"Yeah. But we're all in here! These things are going to kill all of us!" He yelled, stepping up to her, trying to intimidate her but she held his stare defiantly. If he tried anything, she would tear his head off.

Instinctively both Blake and Daryl got closer, ready to jump at Shane if he tried to hurt Barbara.

Shane just couldn't help but smile a bit at her defiance. She stepped back without looking away from her and took his gun from behind his pants.

"You're a doctor, right?" He asked, taking off the safety. "Let me ask you something. Could a living, breathing person, could they walk away from this?" He turned a fist and fired three shots right in the walker's chest that Hershel was holding.

Everything back off a bit and Barbara couldn't help but jump out of surprise, her hand going to the back of her jeans.

"No! Stop it!" Rick yelled at Shane, angrily.

"That's three rounds in the chest!" Shane yelled at Barbara and then at Hershel. "Could someone who's alive, could they just take that?! Why is it still coming?"

He raised his gun again and fired two times more again on the walker's chest.

"That's its heart, its lungs. Why is it still coming, Doc, huh?" Shane yelled, looking at Barbara who was a bit lost. She knew those things weren't alive, but Hershel thought they were. It hadn't bothered her that much because she had seen the barn was safe, but what could she say no. This jackass had very good points.

"Shane, enough!" Rick yelled, beyond angry but unable to do anything because the walker he was holding too was a bit too strong.

"Yeah, you're right, man," Shane replied walking past Barbara and to the walker Hershel was holding. "That is enough."

And then he just shot it right in the head, the body falling to the ground and pulling Hershel a little bit with him.

Everyone just stared in that moment a bit horrified. Even the ones knowing that that thing was dead. But Shane brutality seemed a little bit too much. Hershel just looked broken and he fell to his knees.

"Enough risking our lives for a little girl who's gone!" Shane walked around yelling and looking everybody. "Enough living next to a barn full of things that are trying to kill us! Rick it isn't as it was before!"

Then Shane turned around and ran to the barn. He took a pick and started hitting the lock's keeping the barn shut.

"Take the snare pole!" Rick shouted at the man so he could stop Shane. "Hershel, take the snare pole. Hershel, listen to me, man, please. Take it now. Hershel! Take it! No, Shane. Do not do this, brother!"

But neither Hershel or Shane seemed to listen.

"Wait!" Andrea yelled at Shane.

"Don't do it!" Glenn yelled too.

"Rick!" Lori cried, looking at him, but he couldn't do anything without letting the walker go.

Barbara watched the lost look on Hershel's face and felt her blood boiling. Enough was enough.

The girl turned, walking to Shane and pulled out her gun from behind her jeans. She shot a warning shot just three feet away from his head. Lori, Andrea, Patricia and Ellie screamed and Daryl just stepped closer. Even Rick looked startled not expecting that.

Shane immediately stopped, surprised and turned around.

"I said STOP IT!" Barbara shouted at him angrily, and pointing her gun firmly to him. "NOW STEP AWAY FROM THE BARN!"

Shane half smiled very impressed with the girl.

"Yeah, yeah!" He yelled almost laughing. "You got it! I like that! And I know you see it! You know these things aren't sick! And if you want to live, it y'all want to survive, you got to fight for it! I'm talking about fighting right here, right now!"

"Wait!"

Shane hit the lock one more time breaking it, and then, with the other side of the pick he took out the plank. Then he hit the barn door a couple of times and pulling his gun, he stepped back.

"No!"

"Please!"

"Get behind me," Lori told Carl, putting herself in front of him.

Shane turned around to Barbara who was glaring at him, her gun still up.

"Now you use that thing right!" He told her with a smirk before turning to the barn.

At that moment the barn doors opened a bit and dozens of walkers walked out of it, going straight to them.

Andrea quickly walked ahead, next to Shane and raised her gun, both starting to shoot. T- Dog also joined and Daryl walked to where Barbara was, shooting the ones going after her.

"Go! I have this!" Daryl told her glancing quickly and kept shooting. Barbara turned to him and then sighed cursing.

"Shit!"

She raised her gun one more time, took aim and shot down a walker.

"Maggie," Glenn told her apologetically and she nodded, crying when Andrea shot down her brother Shane. Or what Shane had been.

Shane turned around and shot the walker Rick was holding and the Bret's. Rick then let go of the snare pole and glared at Shane.

Barbara shot two more, but then she stopped almost dropping her gun. That caught Daryl's attention that lower the rifle lightly and turned to her. The girl looked like she just had seen a ghost. She was pale and shaky and started crying.

"Dad?" She said and then he looked at the barn. Two walkers came out of it one shielded by the other. The second walker had been a tall man with gray hair and had a soldier uniform on. Oh shit.

"DAD!" Barbara screamed and Daryl caught her barely in time, his arm holding her by the waist tightly, and she tries to squirm free and screaming.

"DAD! DAD!"

Isabelle saw the walker too, and just as her sister ran to him, but Brett stopped her too. The sister's cries and the shots were the only thing that could be heard.

"No, is not him!" Daryl told her trying to hold her with his other arm, but afraid he could fire the rifle by accident. The girl closed her eyes tightly and then went stiff in his arms.

"Let me go," she said coldly and Daryl quickly released her. She moved out of the way and tucked her gun away, covering her face with her hands. Daryl saw her before lifting the rifle and kept shooting. The two walkers had been shot down already.

The shooting stopped just as suddenly it started. Glenn, Andrea, T-Dog, Shane and Daryl stood there, breathing heavily, dozens of walkers at their feet. Isabelle's cries were now the only thing that could be heard.

Daryl looked now to Barbara and saw the girl standing there, watching the bodies with her eyes red-rimmed but her jaw set. She felt his eyes on her and met his stare. On the other side of the bodies, Blake was watching her too.

Dale finally showed up, walking horrified to the scene. He turned to Rick who was in front of Carl and Lori, completely agitated.

But then, they heard growls again and they all raised their guns, prepared. Slowly a small walker walked out of the barn and it hit Barbara.

 _"She was wearing a blue shirt and khaki pants. She's tall for her age, and thin. She has blonde hair,"_ _  
_that was Daryl's description of...

Even before Carol ran to her screaming, just to be stopped by Daryl, Barbara knew. They finally had found Sophia.

"Sophia! Sophia. Sophia. Oh no. Sophia."

Carol's cries chilled Barbara's blood. She turned to the woman and saw Daryl holding her in the ground. His face just as surprised.

The little walker growled and walked to them slowly but nobody could even raise their guns. They all just stared horrified to the girl.

"Sophia. No. Sophia," Carol sobbed and Daryl stopped holding her back and just hugged her.

Carl and Lori were crying too. She hugged her son tighter.

"Don't watch," she told him.

Rick had been standing there frozen, felt like he had been punched. Like he had been hit. But still he found himself moving forward.

He moved past a dumbstruck Shane and raised his gun, watching the little girl advancing on him. And he took everything about her. Her dirty clothes. Her grayish skin. Her skull like face features and the bloody enormous bite on her neck. The one that had ended with her life.

Rick stared right into her milky eyes, remembering when she had looked into his, trusting his judgement. Trusting him. She had been wrong.

She was now barely a yard away and then he shot her.


	10. Chapter 10

**Guys, thank you so much for still reading this story and leaving reviews, and following it. I really appreciated it and I'm glad you like it.**

* * *

Chapter 10

Lost and Found

...

"Don't look. Don't look," Daryl kept repeating to Carol as he helped her up. But the woman was broken, she was sobbing and she didn't care anymore. She pushed Daryl away and ran to the RV. Nobody stopped her. They just saw her ran away. After all, what could they say after what had just happened? What do you say to a mother who just lost her child?

Daryl saw Carol disappear and then turned to Barbara. She was still standing in the same place, her eyes fixed on the sea of corpses in front of her. He couldn't tell if she was looking at Sophia or at her dad, maybe she wasn't even seeing them.

Isabelle, wrapped up in her brother's arms was sobbing really hard and it was the only thing that could be heard. Then she broke off from his embrace and stumbled past him toward the bodies. She walked past her sister and Rick, watching her approach, tried to stop her.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait," he said but the girl pushed him away. There was another body on top of her father's. She grabbed its arm, pulling it off William Henderson's body. Her sobs intensified.

"Daddy, Daddy," she sobbed as she knelt in front of him.

Neither Barbara nor Brett could tear their eyes from her, and they knew they would never forget this moment as long as they lived.

"Daddy, Daddy," Isabelle turned the body on its back, but the walker opened his eyes, growling and grabbing both her arms tried to pull her in. Isabelle screamed terrified, trying to pull away from its grip. She moved just in time before the walker's jaws closed on her throat.

Everyone ran to her immediately, except Barbara, who was just frozen in place, watching the scene as if she wasn't able to move.

Rick, Shane and Glenn grabbed Isabelle and Daryl and Brett try to pin the walker's arm to the ground. But the corpse wouldn't let go. It was relatively fresh and strong. It was a miracle Isabelle hadn't been bitten already. They didn't want to pull too hard and risked a scratch on Elle's bare arms so they struggled for some stressing moments. Andrea looked around and grabbed a saw from the barn, but couldn't do anything because the walker had still Isabelle on its grip.

Elle was still screaming and the walker was still groaning so nobody noticed when Barbara approached. She didn't hesitate this time.

Shane and Rick finally pulled Isabelle out of the walker's grip and just as they stood her up, Barbara pulled off the trigger and shot her father in the forehead.

Everyone then stopped. All turned to her, while Isabelle was still sobbing, hanging from Shane's grip, but Barbara just felt like as if ice were slipping from her chest to the rest of her body, wrapping her in numbness. Her hand still gripped firmly the humming gun, her eyes hard and empty, watched the corpse on the ground.

Daryl let go of the walker then and stood up, stepping to her and extending a hand reaching for her hand. His fingers barely touched hers when she stepped back without even looking up to him. Blake walked to her too, but she just pushed him away and left without turning around, her sister's sobs ringing in her ears.

* * *

Daryl watched Barbara go and then left a little after. He just didn't see the point on staying.

He didn't follow Rick and the others to the house. He figured the old man would kick them out of the farm anyway. And goddammit, all he could see was Sophia. Sophia as a walker. Sophia being shot dead. Carol's broken face. Barbara's broken face, twice. When she saw her father and then when she saw Sophia. When she realized she had been dead all along. That their search party and risking their life was for nothing. They didn't bring her home. They left her to die in the forest.

Daryl huffed angrily. He had the urge to kick something, to destroy something but he couldn't. He had to go after Barbara and Carol.

He wanted to see Barbara first. He saw her entering the stables, but closely behind was Blake. And he knew he couldn't go. It wasn't his job to console her. She was nothing to him after all. Feeling even angrier, he walked to the camp, instead, looking for Carol.

He found her in the RV, sitting on the table, looking out the window. She turned to him when she heard him entering. Their eyes met and Daryl's softened when he saw her broken expression. He leaned back on the kitchen counter top and she turned back to the window.

* * *

When Barbara shot her father Brett was so close that some of the blood actually got his neck and face. He felt the arm and body, he was holding going limp and he let it go and then turned to her sister.

Barbara looked like she had been frozen. Like she couldn't move or make an expression. Her eyes were empty, but it was just a mask. She was like a time bomb and was already starting to crack. He saw that guy Daryl walking to her and then Blake, but she just brushed them off and walked away. He knew he had to go after her, but he just couldn't. He was just as dumbstruck and horrified as her and Isabelle. He then turned to his other sister.

Shane had passed her to Hershel and Maggie and they walked to the house with Patricia, Rick and Shane. That guy Daryl left, but everyone else stayed. They all looked almost as bad as their sisters. He felt like breaking, but he knew he couldn't. He had to be there for her sisters. He had failed them already. Isabelle was unable to protect herself and Barbara was now trying to master every weapon she could put her hands off to protect them. She shouldn't. That was his job after their father passed and he wouldn't fail him. Not again.

He couldn't keep watching that thing his father had turned to, so he stood up and walked away from it. He took off his cap and let his hair dried in the heat. His scalp was sweating, especially after all that had happened.

He turned it around and saw the old Duke logo in it. It was vintage. It had been his father's. Brett brushed his hair back and placed the cap back on it. He looked up and saw Blake coming at him. He was his sister's boyfriend, but these past months had turned in one of his best buds.

"Are you okay?" Blake asked him and Brett nodded, clearing his throat.

"You shouldn't be asking that to my sister?"

Blake shrugged.

"I went after her, but she needs a bit of space. She wouldn't even look at me."

Brett looked at Blake and nodded. They joined Andrea, Lori and T-Dog among the corpses and then Shane and Rick joined them.

"You want us to start burying?" T-Dog asked Rick.

"We need a service," Andrea intervened. "Carol would want that." "Yeah, we all want that," Rick replied, his voice raspy for yelling at Shane earlier.

There was a long pause where everybody just watched the corpses unable to move.

"Let's- let's dig a grave for Sophia," Lori suggested, seeing that everybody seemed unable to move. "And for William and Shawn, uh, over by those trees."

She pointed the place and everybody looked at it.

"And we'll need a truck to move the bodies."

"I'll get the keys," Blake offered but Shane stopped him.

"No, no. I got the truck."

"And the others?" Brett asked them, looking at the scattered corpses. "That's a lot of digging."

"We bury the ones we love and burn the rest," Andrea replied looking at him. The guy met her eyes and slowly looked at her intensely and Lori stepped up.

"Let's get to work."

...

Shane, T-Dog, Bret, Blake and Andrea dig the graves, with Lori helping them with small things.

Brett felt good digging. It helped him to keep his head busy because he couldn't break apart. He needed to be there for his sisters. Now more than ever.

* * *

When the graves were done Brett left to fetch Barbara, Blake to fetch everybody else and Lori to get Carol.

She found her in the RV, with Daryl sitting on the kitchen counter top, keeping her company in silence.

"They're ready," she told Carol quietly. Carol not even turned. Her lower lip quivered and she shook her head.

"Come on," Lori insisted softly.

"Why?" Carol asked, her voice barely a whisper.

"'Cause that's your little girl," Daryl replied softly and Carol looked up to him. Her eyes blank and empty just like Barbara's earlier.

"That's not my little girl," Carol replied firmly. "That's some other... thing."

She then looked at the window and took a deep breath.

"My Sophia was alone in the woods. All this time I thought... She didn't cry herself to sleep. She didn't go hungry. She didn't try to find her way back. Sophia died a long time ago."

Lori, understanding she wasn't coming, left the RV. She couldn't even start to imagine Carol's grief, but Daryl just stared at her angrily. He saw red. He was furious. Even now. Even after everything had ended, Carol was still leaving Sophia behind. And he had enough.

He stood up and left.

* * *

Everyone went to the funeral except for Carol. Hershel had changed into a suit and they were separated into two groups. On the right was Patricia with Hershel and Maggie. Then Blake and Bret, his arms surrounding both Isabelle and Barbara. Rick's group was on the left and a bit far from them was Daryl, his arms crossed and his eyes on Sophia's grave. He only glanced once at Barbara and she missed it. But she watched him go after the funeral ended. Then she turned around and walked to the stables. Blake followed her again.

He leaned on the stable doors as she saw her saddling one of the horses.

"Where are you going?" He asked her softly but she didn't answer right away.

"Out." "Yeah, I figured," Blake replied, trying to not sound sarcastic. The girl didn't say anything else.

"Do you want to talk about it?" "No."

Blake straightened up and went after her. He placed a tentative hand on her arm.

"You'll have to. You cannot keep things to yourself or..."

"Or what?" She turned to him, snatching her arm out of his grip. "I'm gonna explode emotionally? Yes, I took the same bullshit psychology class than you."

The boy was taken aback by her aggressive.

"I just want you to be okay."

"Well, I'm just damn fine. Peachy."

"What's with the cursing and the attitude?"

"Nothing. I'm just emotionally exploding, am I not?" The girl said, tightening the saddle on the horse and checking everything was in place.

"Fine. Apparently that guy showed you more than just use the crossbow. Now you're an ass too."

His snap surprised her and just made her angrier. She turned, glaring at him.

"Don't call me that again. Ever. Do you hear me?" She spat, grabbing the saddle, ready to mount the horse.

"I just want to help you!" The boy snapped exasperatedly. Barbara turned to him, her face emotionless.

"Why?"

"Oh, I don't know, because I'm your freaking boyfriend!"

"Yeah, a hell of a boyfriend," she replied sarcastically.

"What's that supposed to mean?

"Nothing. Forget it. You never get it."

"I'm sorry. Would you like me to be Daryl?"

His response didn't take her by surprise and just angered her. She was freaking tired about his worries about Daryl. She didn't want to hear him anymore. And especially not now.

"Screw you!"

She put her foot on the saddle stirrup and mounted the horse. But Blake stood in the middle blocking her way. She looked down at him and saw the hurt and sadness and felt a little bad. She felt like a heartless bitch. He didn't deserve it. But she couldn't break either in front of him, so she held to her blank face for dear life.

"I don't know what to do. I just want you to be okay."

"I'm fine, okay. I'm fine. I can take care of myself. I don't need you or anyone else," she stated coldly taking the reins and the guy was taken aback by his admission.

And without looking back, she spurred the horse, leaving the stable and disappeared in the woods.

* * *

Maggie had been talking to Glenn, about the possibly of him staying. He wasn't sure so she tried to convince him when Isabelle, who had been washing the dishes behind them in the kitchen fainted, knocking the dish rack down.

They ran to her and took her upstairs to her room. Once there they noticed she hadn't fainted per say. She was awake or at least had her eyes opened, but she didn't move or responded. She just lay there.

"Sweetie, can you hear me?" Maggie sat down next to her, frowning worried. She had no idea what had happened to her.

"What's wrong with her?" Brett asked, his arms tightly crossed, looking at her sister intently. He hadn't protected her yet again. And he had no idea what to do.

"She might be in shock," Lori suggested from the door. "Where's Hershel?"

"We can't find him anywhere," Glenn responded, looking at the blonde girl in the bed, as worried as anyone else.

"Where's Barbie?" Lori then tried and just then Blake came in, looking tired and beaten up. "Nobody had seen her either?" "She took a horse, but didn't say where she went. She hadn't returned either."

Brett closed his eyes for a moment. Great, just great. One of his sisters was in a comma or God knew what and the other was missing. How much of an idiot he was?

"I think she may be in the lake," Blake said after seeing Elle was in the same state he left her. "I'm going for her. You try to find Hershel."

* * *

"Your stepmother's things?" Rick asked Maggie as he searched something around the room that told him where Hershel might have gone. There were also Shane, Lori, Glenn and Bret.

"He was so sure she'd recover," Maggie replied with a sighed, leaning on the vanity. "They'd just pick up where they left off." "Looks like he found an old friend," Shane commented, finding the flask on the dresser.

Shane shook it, noticing it was empty and then tossed it to Rick. He caught it midair. But Maggie took it from him, watching it closely.

"That was my grandfather's," she told them. "Gave it to him when he died."

"I didn't take Hershel for a drinker," Rick said.

"No, he gave it up on the day I was born," Maggie told them, looking up from the flask. "He didn't even allow liquor in the house."

"What's the bar in town?" Rick asked, walking to her.

"Hatlin's," Maggie said. "He practically lived there in his drinking days."

Rick nodded.

"Betting that's where I'll find him."

"Yeah, I've seen the place," Glenn told him. "I'll take you."

"I'm going too," Brett told them and Rick nodded.

"All right, I'll get the truck," Rick told him, going to the door but Maggie stopped Glenn.

"No."

"It's an easy run," Glenn told her.

"Like the pharmacy?"

"Hey, Maggie?" Rick called her and she turned to him. "I'll bring him back."

Rick left the room and Lori and Shane followed him closely. They didn't Rick to go after Hershel. They said he had to worry about their problems first, like Carl.

"Carl said he would've shot Sophia himself," Lori told Rick upset. "That's your son. He's getting cold. He's growing up in a world with... He's growing up in a world where he needs a father like you- around; alive, not running off, solving everybody else's problems."

"It's not just his problem I'm trying to solve," Rick snapped at her upset. "We need Hershel for the baby. And Barbara too."

He looked at her, letting that sink in.

"I'm going after him," he said firmly and then left.

* * *

Blake returned after two hours. He had reached the lake and searched for her, but couldn't find her. So he went upstairs, hoping Elle may be better, but she wasn't. His heart dropped to his knees. He hadn't known Elle much before everything happened, but now it was different. Now he considered her like her sister and, see her like that, unable to do nothing was messing him up. And he felt guilty. Maybe if he hadn't yelled at Barbara she would have said where she was going. Or maybe she wouldn't have run off.

Lori entered the room and Maggie looked up.

"Where is she?" Maggie asked him as soon as she spotted him and Blake shook his head.

"She wasn't there. I can't find her. She's not in the farm either."

Andrea, who had been watching her walked to Lori.

"We need to find her," Maggie said, frowning, worried sick for both her cousins. "Elle needs her and it's dangerous outside once it gets dark."

Andrea spotted Lori also and walked to her.

"Her heart's racing and she's burning up. We need Hershel or Barbie," she told the brunette. "They'll know what to do."

Lori paced a bit more and looked out of the window, thinking about something she could do. Then she turned to Andrea.

"Would you watch Carl for a while?" She asked Andrea.

"Of course."

And then Lori left.

* * *

Lori found Daryl by the trees on the edge of the forest. Apparently he had moved as far as he could from the house without leaving the farm.

"Moving to the suburbs?" Lori joked as he walked to him. But he didn't look up. He continued to sharpen an arrow he was making so Lori went to the point.

"Listen, Elle's in some kind of catatonic shock. We need Hershel."

"Yeah. So what?" He replied nonchalantly. Lori squatted next to him.

"So I need you to run into town real quick and bring him and Rick back."

He didn't answer.

"Daryl?"

He finally looked up to her and he didn't look happy.

"Your bitch went window-shopping," he snapped at Lori. "You want him? Fetch him yourself. I got better things to do," and he went back to sharpening his arrow.

Lori looked at him exasperatedly. He wanted Rick back and they needed Hershel, but maybe she could convince him to go for Barbara instead. She had seen them a few days back, even if they hadn't noticed her and she could swear he cared for her. Maybe he knew where she was or at least she could go and get her.

"Fine. You know where Barbie is?"

His hands stopped for a brief moment and he made an effort to not look up. He felt his blood boiling at her ridiculous nickname.

"Why don't you ask her brother or her boyfriend?" He snapped, trying to look as disinterested as before, but he practically spat the last word.

"Brett left with Glenn and Rick to go after Hershel. And Blake tried looking for her at some lake, but he didn't have luck. Nobody knows where she is."

"Well, I don't know where she is either," he replied, keeping with his work. But he tightened his grip on the arrow at the mention of that jerk.

Lori frowned at him, but kept pushing from a different angle.

"It's getting dark and it may be dangerous for her to be outside alone." "Well, she shouldn't have left."

"What's the matter with you?" Lori finally snapped. "Don't you be so selfish."

But just as her, Daryl also lost his temper.

"Selfish?" He stood up, glaring at her. "Listen to me, Olive Oyl. I was out there looking for that little girl every single day! I took a bullet and an arrow in the process. Don't you tell me about me getting my hands dirty! You want those idiots or that brat? Have a nice ride. I'm done looking for people!"

And he sat down again, this time agitated. Sharpening the arrow with anger. He didn't look at her, dismissing her. Lori made a last try.

"Elle is Barbara's sister. She would want to be there for her. I thought you were friends with her."

"Well, you thought wrong. I taught her how to use a crossbow, that's it."

Daryl kept sharpening the point of the arrow without looking and heard Lori walking giving up. When she was gone, he looked at Lori's tiny form returning to the house and huffed torn apart.

He had been honest. He was done doing favors for people, caring. Finding Sophia that way had just broken something inside him... but Barbara had suffered too. She had cared for Sophia even when she never met her and then she had to shoot her own father. He had seen her there and he didn't like what he saw. She was almost cold and emotionless. She didn't flinch during the funeral. What would happen to her if something went wrong with her sister? Or more like it, what would happen to her if she didn't return before nightfall? He knew she wasn't in her right mind and she took a horse and took off. What if the horse threw her off like to him? What if she was attacked? No, he tried to stop his worry. He had seen her. That girl could take her of herself. Better than any other women in his group actually. But the doubt remained. What if she couldn't defend herself in her state? Why if she was attacked by surprise again? And then he imagined her, like Sophia, walking suddenly from the woods, with grayish skin and skull-like face, milky eyes. With a bite on her neck... Or what if he found her later in the woods, torn apart? He couldn't take it. He knew he couldn't. He cared for her too much now. He liked her well enough to worry. And had some kind of feelings for her if he was being honest. And those feelings were the ones that made him leave the arrow alone and take his crossbow.

Sighing and angry with himself, he went after Barbara.

* * *

Daryl knew Barbara had taken a horse because he had seen her when she left so it was easier to follow her trace. He was relieved to notice that so far she had had a smooth ride. No blood. No signs of a fight or that she had stopped. And after a while he knew exactly where she went, but he kept following the trace in case something had gone wrong.

It took him a while to reach the house, even when he was practically running. He calculated they had one more hour of light at most. The house seemed empty, just like when they found it, but when he went to the back, he found the horse tied to a window and the girl sitting on the grass next to those damn flowers.

If she heard him, Barbara didn't move. Just sat there, her arms around her knees, her chin resting on them, staring ahead.

Daryl would never admit it, but at that moment he was almost overwhelmed by the relief of seeing her well and there. All the way to the house had been torturous for him. Imagining the worst and trying to pick noises of a fight, or screams. He didn't feel completely at peace until he saw she hadn't any bites or scratches either.

"There you are."

He said when he finally reached her side, but she didn't look up or acknowledged expression was just blank and it bothered him. He wanted her to react somehow. He reminded him of Carol. How the woman suddenly said those things about Sophia and his anger quickly built up. His anger for looking in vain for Sophia, because of Carol not showing up for her daughter's funeral, for his idiotic hope, and of Barbara, because she had no clue how close from a heart attack he was while looking for her. Because she had no clue that he cared that much for her. And why would she? She was Daddy's little princess and he was a damn back-wood redneck. Why would she ever notice him if not for his damn crossbow? But he would never say any of those things. He would rather be torn apart by walkers than admit his insecurities. So he lashed at her with the only thing he could.

"You knew about Sophia?" He asked her aggressively. His tone was ferocious.

Barbara finally reacted. She snapped out of her state and looked up at him, taken aback and startled.

"What?" "Did you know Sophia was there?!"

From her expression he knew she hadn't the slightest idea, but he needed a reason to leash on her his anger.

"No. No. I... I didn't. How can you...?"

Her voice suddenly broke and she started crying.

Well, damn, Daryl thought taken aback. His anger disappearing just as quickly and he just stood there, not knowing what to do.

"My dad was there," she sobbed. "My dad was there the whole time..."

"Hey," Daryl said, kneeling beside her, dropping his crossbow to the side and reaching for her shoulder awkwardly.

She kept crying and he was a lost.

"You knew he was dead," Daryl tried, regretting his words immediately knowing it wasn't the best thing to say. But she had told him so. Barbara said she knew his father had died on that rooftop.

She shook her head.

"I knew... I knew he had died," she sobbed and then looked up to him. Her teary eyed-face was breaking him. "But don't you get it? Otis didn't go to that damn high school and got him to the barn... He must have stumbled upon him in the woods and... If he was in the woods... He must have escaped the school... but he got bitten... and he died in the woods alone... like..."

He felt like she had just punched him. The like implicit. Like Sophia, she had meant. Both her father and Sophia wandered those woods agonizing, until they died and Otis found them and put them in the barn. He understood now. She cried because her father had suffered. Because he never made it to the farm alive. But he also suspected that she hadn't mourned him. And he could totally see that. She had felt the need to be strong for her siblings and kept things inside. And finally she had snapped.

She buried her face in her arms and he let her cry. He didn't know what to do anyway. So he just rubbed her back.

After what felt an eternity, she looked up to him, tears falling from her red-rimmed eyes.

"I'm sorry," she told him, her voice shakily. "I didn't know... about Sophia. I'm so sorry... I really thought we were going to find her..."

He felt the blow again, but this time he pulled her to him. She buried her face in his neck, and he held her tightly. He would never admit it, but seen her like that was tearing him inside. Then her sobs started to come short and her breath quickened. She was hyperventilating. He pulled back and held her by her arms.

"Hey, hey," Daryl told her. "Breathe. Breathe. Come on." Barbara looked at him and tried to do it. She couldn't at first, but slowly her breathing normalized and she could cry normally. Again Daryl hugged her and she hugged him back tightly, burying her face in his neck. As she was afraid he would disappear. He put a hand on her head, and petted her trying to soothe her. Her scent like lavender hit him and he found himself burying his nose in her hair. He knew he shouldn't. This was only going to make things worse later, but he couldn't help himself. She was in his arms, her breath on his neck and she was holding him tightly.

"I'm sorry about your dad," he told her, but she just kept crying. He didn't want to tell her about her sister after seeing her like this, but she wouldn't forgive him if he didn't.

"Shh, come on. I need you to stop, please," he asked her as gently as he could and the girl looked at him surprised, still sobbing a little. He had never talked to her that way. Daryl pulled a string of hair behind her ear and looked at her, and then cupped her face with his hands, wiping off her tears with his thumbs. She held onto his wrists, holding them in place. He sighed and leaned over placing a soft kiss on her forehead, his heart almost racing out of his body. Damn, he was so screwed, he thought, but it felt too damned good.

He pulled away and the intensity of her look struck him. She was looking at him like she had never seen him before. And like she liked what she was seeing. Her eyes roamed his face, her hands holding tighter to his hands, which were still on her face. And she was so damned close...

She held his stare, blushing lightly and Daryl swallowed slowly. His heart pumping harder if that was possible. She leaned to him and now she was even closer, her eyes closing. He felt her breath on his stubble and he knew he wasn't going to stop. Screw Blake, he thought. Screw everybody, he wasn't going anywhere. If she liked him as much as he liked her... but somehow thinking about her boyfriend made him thought about her brother and her sister... Isabelle, right. And before he could give in and kissed her, those thoughts stopped him. He had to tell her. He had to.

He regretfully cleared his throat and pulled back lightly. Barbara looked at him confused but embarrassed, so he quickly said, trying to save the situation.

"Listen, something happened to your sister."

He didn't save the situation, he made it worse. Barbara eyes opened in fear and she pulled away in shock.

"WHAT?!"

Almost with a sigh, he let go of her face and looked at her seriously.

"Lori thinks she's in shock, but... they're not sure what's wrong with her. It sounded serious. And they need you. Your sister needs you."

She started getting up and Daryl helped her get to his feet too.

"What-what about Hershel?" She asked him, her hands starting to shake. She couldn't help but think of Sophia and her stomach twisted with fear.

"They can't find him either. Rick, Glenn and your brother went out looking for him."

Barbara looked around like she didn't know what to do. She seemed lost for a moment, and she closed her eyes taking a deep breath, running her hands through her face. When she finally looked up, her eyes had hardened, not a single trace of grieving left that surprised even Daryl.

She wiped off her tears with her hands and Daryl stepped back, giving her space now that she had pulled herself together. The moment was gone and wouldn't come back anyway, he thought as he watched her crossing the lawn decidedly to her horse.

"Let's go," Barbie told him, mounting the horse and then turning to him, extending a hand.

* * *

"Good God, can you go any slower?!" Barbara snapped at Daryl and the guy just buffed, rolling his eyes.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to get us killed. I can try harder though," he replied sarcastically as he hurried a bit more the horse. He hadn't let her ride. It was already a bit dark and in her state, she would get them killed. He was going as fast as he could, but being careful and the girl had started to bitch.

"Ha-ha," she responded upset.

Finally they cleared the forest and Daryl then went full speed. They crossed the farm in less than two minutes.

He barely pulled in front of the house when she was already jumping out. She tumbled and Daryl held her arm to keep her upright.

"Hey, watch out. Don't need you hurting yourself in the way," he replied grumpily and she turned to him, looking at the horse.

"Can you get the...?"

Daryl nodded and waved her off.

"I got him," he said, patting the horse's head. "Go."

The girl smiled at him gratefully before running to the house.

Daryl sighed, imagining already Lori would eventually find out he did go, find her and get her here. Like he cared, he thought as he rode to the stables.

All he could think about now was how close she had been, his breath already rubbing his face. And what she had said. That she had broken up with her boyfriend. She didn't seem so sad about that. He wondered if he had told him because she had been also sad about that... or just to let him know.

* * *

In the house, everyone was getting ready for dinner. Carl and T-Dog were already at the table and Dale was placing napkins when Shane and Andrea entered the dining room and sat next to them.

"They should've been back by now," Andrea said.

"Yeah. Well, we'll head out first thing in the morning," Shane replied calmly behind him as Patricia put a plate of food next to him. He looked up to her and smiled.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

Blake entered the room, passing around forks and knives and Carol and Maggie brought the rest of the food.

"Carl, I want you to keep your head up, okay?" Shane told the little boy when he saw his fallen face. "Your old man, he's the toughest son of a-"

"No cursing in the house," Patricia interrupted him with a warning stare and Shane nodded, suppressing a smile.

"Sorry."

At that moment Maggie heard a horse galloping. She looked through the window and saw Barbara and Daryl arriving on a horse. She felt a wave of relieved washing over her.

She saw Barbara running to the house and bursting through the door. Everyone in the dining room stopped and stood up as she ran to them, looking around frantically. Barbara's eyes fell on Maggie.

"Where's Elle?" She said out of breath. Maggie walked to her.

"Upstairs in her room." "Thanks."

She ran upstairs, followed by Maggie, who told everybody to stay in the dining room and kept eating.

Barbara burst into her sister's room and sat next to her carefully, not wanting to upset her.

"Ellie, baby, can you hear me?" She asked her, taking her pulse. It was a bit faster than normal. She also was a bit warm.

"What's wrong?" Maggie asked, entering the room. She turned to her cousin who had just come in.

"She has catatonic depression. Do we have some Benzodiazepine or N-methyl-D-aspartate?"

Maggie shook her head.

"No. We used all the drugs we had with Carl," Maggie quickly replied.

"Shit," Barbara cursed surprising both her brother and cousin. "Where Hershel put the meds? In the pantry?"

Maggie nodded and Barbara went down, followed by her cousin. Everyone seemed agitated, dinner completely forgotten.

"What happened?" Barbara asked, looking around.

"We can't find Lori," Carol replied, placing her hands on her hips. "She's not in the house."

"Did you see her when you came here?" Shane asked Barbara and then girl shook her head.

"No. And neither Daryl did, or he would have said something."

Blake turned to her at that, but the girl didn't meet his eyes.

"Shit, we need to find her," Shane snapped before leaving the house abruptly. Barbara exchanged a look with Maggie both thinking the same. Shane seemed way to worry about Lori.

But either way they agreed to split and go looking for her.

"I'm gonna stay here and see if I can do something for Elle, you go," Barbara told the girl and left to help the others look for Lori.

Barbara went straight to the pantry and cursed to the left medication. Aspirin, pain killers, and vitamins. Nothing she could use on her sister. Nothing she could do. She cursed again and hit the pantry door, frustrated.

* * *

Carol found Daryl on the edge of the forest by a small brick wall, sitting in front of a campfire. He was picking on the logs to make the fire bigger.

"We can't find Lori," she said without preamble, a bit breathless. "And the others aren't back yet either."

"Yeah. That dumb bitch must've gone off looking for 'em," Daryl said, matter-of-factly, without turning to her.

"What?"

"Yeah, she asked me to go. I told her I was done being an errand boy," he said with disdain.

"And you didn't say anything?" Carol said exasperatedly but Daryl didn't even look up.

Carol turned around and left, but she stopped when she noticed he had moved his tent there. She sighed and walked back to Daryl.

"Don't do this. Please. I've already lost my girl," she pleaded with him. Daryl threw the stick he had been poking the fire with and stood up angrily. He still hadn't forgiven her.

"That wasn't my problem neither," he snapped at her before walking away. But before he could go too far, Carol told him: "You brought Barbara, didn't you?"

That made him stop, but he didn't turn around.

"You did. And that wasn't your problem either," Carol continued, sure he wasn't listening. "But you cared."

He turned around, glaring at the woman, angry she had thrown that in his face.

"No, I don't. She's hot. I may get laid. That's it."

And he turned around, ignoring her flinch after his crude lie. Carol just turned around exasperated and disappointed, and left.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

At the edge

...

Barbara stayed with her sister as long as she could, but she couldn't look at her. She tried snapping her out of it with putting some alcohol under her nose, wetting her face, shaking her lightly, but nothing seemed to help.

Seeing the blonde immobile and with glass eyes was just driving her crazy. Finally, she went to Hershel's room to look for any meds that may have not been in the pantry. She searched inside his bag and found some sedatives. It wouldn't snap her out of it, but it would help.

She was about to leave when Blake entered the room and she stopped dead in her tracks.

Nobody said nothing for a while, just stared at the other. Blake looked a mix between relieved, angry and hurt and Barbara could barely hold his stare.

"I see you're okay," he said at last and the girl nodded.

"I am."

"Have you seen Ellie?"

"Yes, I-hum... She's catatonic. Needs treatment we don't have so we have to wait for her to snap out of it. I was going to give her some sedatives," she showed him the box and the guy nodded.

"We were worried. Maggie didn't know what to do," Blake said in a serious tone.

"I know," the girl said, looking down at her hands.

"I cannot be angry with you for the way you acted," the guy told her and she looked at him surprised.

Blake shrugged.

"It's not different from how I acted when I found my mother..."

He didn't have to finish. She knew. She understood.

"And you have been so strong until now after everything. So I can't be mad about how you acted."

Barbara frowned at him. He clearly was upset, and she had expected him to yell at her or something.

"So why...?"

"Daryl found you, didn't he?"

She stopped mid-sentence and repressed a sigh. Yep, he was angry.

"Yes."

"And he convinced you to come back?"

Barbara raised an eyebrow at his accusatory tone.

"Convince me? He didn't need to. He just told me my sister was cold out and I jumped back right into the horse," Barbara replied coldly.

Blake just snorted and shook his head.

"What are we doing, Barbie?

"Well, I'm trying to take this to my sister and you're there accusing me of something that didn't happen."

He looked up at her tone getting angry.

"I'm not stupid."

"It happened, nothing. I was desperate to get away so I rode to a house where... we're pretty sure Sophia stayed for a while and just cried everything I haven't cried for. My mother, my father, Michael and Christopher, Doctor Stevens..." Barbara's voice trembled and she took a deep breath, controlling her emotions. She had cried enough for one day. "Daryl followed my trace, he found me, he told me about my sister and we rode back. End of the story. There was no kiss and no cheating so can't stop with all this. I have no time. My brother is missing and my sister..."

Barbara made a gesture and then walked to the door trying to leave but he grabbed her arm. He didn't hurt her, he just stopped her.

"Do you care for him?"

Barbara held his stare.

"I do. I care for everybody in here... Except Shane."

"Do you like him? And you know what kind of like I'm referring to."

Barbara really didn't have time for this, nor did she want to. She was exhausted, physically and emotionally, but she owned Blake the truth. She probably owned much more, but it was the least she could do.

She looked at him even if she had the urge to look away.

"Yes."

Blake let her go as if she had burnt him but didn't look surprised, just hurt.

"Do you have feelings for him?"

Barbara sighed.

"No."

Blake looked at her confused. Apparently he was waiting for a big declaration.

"But you said..."

"I... I care for him, and I am attracted to him, yes. But I don't have feelings for him," the girl said, looking up at him.

Blake frowned as finally understanding something and nodded.

"Do you have feelings for me?" "I-I had."

Blake smiled without happiness, and snorted.

"At least you're honest. Brutally honest but..."

"Blake."

"Did you love me?" She now looked taken aback. "Before all this I mean. Before all this dead."

Barbara couldn't look at him anymore.

"I..."

Blake snorted and ran a hand through his hair.

"I'm such an idiot, am I not? Both me and Dixon."

Barbara looked up, frowning and Blake shook his head.

"We care, but you don't."

"It's not like that—"

"I have feelings for you. I think I even still love you, Barbie. And that asshole has feelings for you too. But you don't care."

"It's not like that!" Barbara snapped getting angry. "I cannot change what I feel."

"I guess not," the boy replied a bit sadly, burying his hand on his pockets. "Well, thank you for your honesty. You were right, you don't need anyone."

And then he turned around and left her standing there. She had the urge to go and stopped him, but she didn't. She had hurt him enough. At least now he could move on. Life was so short now. He wasn't going to waste his time on her anymore. But still...

She returned to Elle's room and gave her the sedatives. She sat with her a while thinking of Blake and what had he said. That she didn't care enough. The girl sighed and checked Elle's pulse. It had dropped considerably and she wasn't hot anymore.

She tried to wake her up but didn't work.

Barbara sighed again and then went down to the kitchen. Soon after, she left the house. She needed to clear her head.

* * *

Daryl didn't see Barbara coming, but he did see Carol. The girl hid behind the wall as Daryl confronted Carol.

"What are you doing?" Daryl asked her aggressively.

"Keeping an eye on you," Carol replied.

"Ain't you a peach?" Daryl said sarcastically, glaring at her.

"I'm not gonna let you pull away. You've earned your place," Carol said earnestly.

"If you spent half your time minding your daughter's business instead of sticking your nose in everybody else's, she'd still be alive!" Daryl snapped at her and Barbara almost dropped the plate she was holding. If he had told her that, he had turned around, his face with the strength of the slap she'd give him.

Carol stared at her, hurt at his words, but didn't move, not even flinch. Daryl seemed more taken aback that his words didn't have the desired effect.

"Go ahead," she said with a tiny voice.

"Go ahead and what?" He snapped, but she didn't answer. She just stared at him.

"I mean just go!" He spat, waving her off. "I don't want you here!"

But Carol didn't move, didn't flinch.

"You're a real piece of work, lady!" Daryl started ranting angrily. "What, are you gonna make this about my daddy or some crap like that?" He huffed. But Carol just stood there, staring at him, not even flinching at his tone. "Man, you know Jack. You're afraid. You're afraid 'cause you're all alone. You got no husband, no daughter. You don't know what to do with yourself. You ain't my problem!" He then started shouting. "Sophia wasn't mine! All you had to do was keep an eye on her!"

He stopped shouting and stared her down. Carol saw him breaking and stared for a moment. Then, without a word she left. Daryl saw her go and felt bad, deep down. He had unleashed his anger on her. Anger that she hadn't caused. At least not all of it. He knew it wasn't her fault Sophia had gotten lost or that they didn't find her. Hell, he blamed himself even more, that's he lashed on her. Because deep down, he was blaming himself.

Then a voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

"So you're staying here now?"

He turned around quickly and saw Barbara walking to him with a Tupperware in her hands. He briefly wondered if she had heard his argument with Carol.

Daryl just shrugged and sat down next to his campfire. He was still angry and didn't hide it very well.

"You shouldn't be here all by yourself," the girl said and he turned to her a bit annoyed. "It's dangerous being so close of the woods."

"Why do you care?" He said a bit aggressively, picking up the stick and kept poking the logs.

The girl watched a bit before walking to him and sitting next to him. She shrugged.

"I just do."

He suppressed a smile. Especially after he noticed the oversized football jacket she was wearing. That was a man's jacket and he had the suspicion to whom it belonged to.

"Yeah?" He answered aggressively. "And what does your boyfriend thinks about that?"

Barbara looked down thinking about his fight with Blake. He had accused her that he didn't care enough. He said she didn't care enough for him to love him, or enough for Daryl to do something about it. Was it true?

"I don't have one. And even if I did, this would be none of his business," she responded a little bit snappy.

Daryl paused and looked at her. She was avoiding his stare on purpose, but why?

"So you really broke up with him?" He tried to sound nonchalant about it.

"I... yeah. We kinda dumped each other," the girl replied shrugging.

"Hum." "And this..." Daryl asked after a while, brushing the sleeve of the jacket.

Barbara suppressed a smile, understanding his annoyance and explained:

"It's my brother's. I stole it because it looks better on me."

At the mention of Brett, her heart constricted but she knew it was useless to be worried. In these days, either, you do something or you don't worry about it. It was just stupid. And she knew her brother was with Rick, Glenn and Hershel, capable men she trusted, so she pushed her concern to the back of her head.

Barbara turned to Daryl and saw his lips turning upwards and she knew he was fighting a smile. Encourage by his change in his demeanor, she handed him the Tupperware.

"Here. I brought you dinner," she said.

Daryl looked at her with a raised eyebrow.

"I've already eaten."

The girl turned and saw a string tied between two trees and hanging from it there was the carcasses of squirrels and rabbits, as well as his unsettling walkers-ears necklace. He found it endearingly funny, though.

"Yes, I can see the buffet," she replied scrunching up her nose with a genuine smile this time. "But you really need something else than... squirrel, or who knows what else."

Daryl pressed his mouth into a thin line, his good mood instantly evaporating. His anger towards Carol was still there and Barbie's comment somehow triggered it.

"What? My ways are not up to your level?" He asked her a bit aggressively.

The girl didn't hear what he said to Carol but knew he was upset. He was still angry and was taking it out on her. She wouldn't let him do it though.

"Don't be stupid. You know I don't think that if you," she said matter-of-factly.

Daryl turned to her, still buffing a little.

"No?"

"No. I've told you what I think of you many times," she said, rolling her eyes with a smile and reaching for his hand. "You're a big jerk."

Daryl actually cracked a smile.

"Thank you, you're so sweet," he said sarcastically. Seeing him in a better mood the girl handing him the food again.

"Shut up and eat, Daryl."

He stared at the food for a bit before sighing and taking it. He opened it and saw some green and chicken casserole. Somehow it warmed him that she had thought of checking on him and bringing some food.

"Here," the girl said, pulling out a fork wrapped in a napkin from her pocket. Daryl took it and ate a big bite of chicken. The girl smiled, leaning forward a bit, resting her arms on her knees.

"So, I heard you were fighting with Carol."

Daryl didn't look up, but he seemed to pause a moment. He swallowed and turned to her.

"Now you are spying on me?" He said a bit snappy but Barbie just smirked at him, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't flatter yourself, Dixon," she said, pulling out a bottle of water from her cross bag and gave it to him. Daryl took it without protesting this time.

"I was coming this way and I just heard your sweet voice not what you were saying," she clarified, teasing a bit. Daryl nodded and kept eating. He was actually relieved she hadn't heard any of what he had said to Carol. He felt ashamed, if he was being honest. He knew she was only worried about him, like Barbara, and he appreciated, but right now he was on edge and couldn't handle her attempts.

Barbara let he ate until he had emptied half the container because she knew how stubborn he could be, and her next words were going to upset him.

"You know, what happened wasn't your fault," she said almost in a whisper. Just as she expected, he stilled and put the food away, turning to her upset.

"Are you going to start too?" "That's why you were yelling at Carol? Because she told you it wasn't your fault?" She asked frowning.

"I know it wasn't my fault. Sophia wasn't my responsibility," Daryl snapped at her before standing up and walking to the fire. He grabbed a stick he had left in the ground and poked the logs around.

"No, but you made it yours," Barbara replied, standing too and walked to him.

"You don't know what you're talking about," he said aggressively.

Barbara sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Fine. I won't push it. I hate when people are doing that to me, but... it wasn't your fault, Daryl."

The girl hesitated, but then she reached and placed a hand on his shoulder. Daryl went still as she had burnt him, but didn't move. Did she really have not feelings for him? Barbara asked herself. She didn't like to see him like this. Didn't like that he blames himself and had come here, far from everyone. She worried he hadn't eaten, that he might have no water or that he didn't want to sleep. She cared for him, she knew that. And she was attracted to him. He looked very nice even without much light, but was there something deeper?

"Maybe... maybe if I hadn't stopped looking that night..."His voice startled here, snapping her out of her own train of thoughts. She looked up to Daryl and he saw guilt and self-hate in his eyes. He was blaming himself, and that guilt was eating him. "I told Carol, you know, that it was pointless to keep looking in the dark. It wasn't. We would've found her," he admitted, lowering his head.

Barbara stared at him for a moment, a bit shocked he had actually talked about what he was feeling. She made a pause before answering:

"Maybe, maybe not. But you didn't get Sophia killed. You were right. If you have kept looking, more of you have died."

He turned to her and her hand slipped off his shoulder, but he caught it. It wasn't the first time he held her hand, but this felt different, more intimate somehow. He took her tiny hand in his much bigger one and softly caressed her knuckles. Her breath got caught in her throat and her mind went blank. He looked up to her and his eyes pierced her. There was so much intensity in them that she was almost scared.

He stepped closer until their chests were almost touching. She was shorter than him but found his face somehow getting closer. Should she stop him?

"Barbara?"

Both Daryl and Barbara jumped out of their skin. Daryl dropped her hand and quickly walked back to the log where they had been sitting earlier. The girl disoriented turned to Carol who was walking towards them. She wasn't sure if Carol had seen anything or not, so she cleared her throat and walked to the woman, thankfully it was dark and she wouldn't notice her blush.

"Carol... what's wrong?"

"It's Lori. She was in a car accident."

The girl looked at her aghast.

"What? How?"

"She went looking after Rick, crashed the car."

Daryl who had been listening looked down at his hands. That had been his fault too, he thought. He just sent the woman away without giving a shit.

Barbara covered her mouth with her hand.

"Oh my God! Is she okay?"

"She's fine, but she wants you to check on her for... the baby."

Carol's implication down in both Daryl and Barbara but while it was a shock for the girl it was more like a slap to the man.

Daryl closed his eyes. And Lori was pregnant. Another kid, he got killed.

"Oh my God, yes, of course."

Carol smiled at her relieved and left without waiting for her. Barbara looked down at Daryl who glanced at her. The guilt and anger in his eyes was back. Great.

"Go," he said, waving his hand.

She smiled lightly at him.

"Eat up, Dixon. I want that plate clean," she ordered him and smiled wider when he immediately picked up the food. "Good night."

"Night... Make sure she's okay. Please."

The tone of his voice made her heart hurt. She nodded and squeezed his shoulder.

"Sure."

"And don't tell her that I said that."

Barbara shook her head, smiling.

"No problem."

She couldn't resist it and brush her fingers through his hair lightly. Daryl flinched and looked up, but she was already walking back to the house. The man just stared back at her a warm feeling spreading into his chest because nobody had ever done that for him. Maybe just Carol but that was different. As he grabbed the Tupperware and kept eating, he couldn't fight the smile on his face. Maybe he wasn't alone in this mess of uncomfortable feelings.

* * *

"Well, I can say anything about the baby yet, but I think you're fine," Barbara told Lori after she had checked her through. She checked her eyes one more time just to make sure she had done everything as supposed to.

"You have no internal damage or bleeding. You only have a small concussion, so you'll have to be awake for a couple of hours..."

"No problem," she responded a bit sarcastic but tired.

Barbara turned off the flashlight and looked down at Lori.

"They'll be okay," she said before turning and putting the lighter back into Hershel's bag.

"You don't know that," Lori said, sighing and standing up.

"I don't. But either we do something or we hope for the best," the girl replied shrugging.

"Do you? Hope for the best?" Lori asked her and she turned around to look at her. To say that she was freaking out about her brother and Hershel was an understatement, but being in a frenzy and worried all the time wasn't going to solve anything.

"I've lost my parents, my sister is in the other room in a state I can't get her out of, Hershel and my brother are missing, Sophia is gone and... well, I don't have a boyfriend anymore. So no. I learned to never hope for the best, but he's my family, and I won't ever give up on it. You shouldn't either, especially with Rick. He's something else."

Lori stayed quiet a bit after that. She got it in a way. She had lost her mother, she was sure of it. But she still had Carl and Rick and...

"So you and Blake broke up?" The woman asked Barbie.

The girl looked taken aback, but figured the house wasn't that big anymore with all of them living there and they hadn't been quiet about it.

Barbara nodded, looking down.

"It's complicated."

"Does it have to do with... someone else?"

Barbara frowned. She wondered if she had meant certain stubborn man camping in the woods.

"No. It doesn't have to do with someone else but Blake and I. After I lost my dad in the safe zone I've been just like... numb."

Lori nodded, crossing her arms. She had been there.

"I get that. I was like that when everything started."

"How do you get out of it?" The girl asked her.

"I haven't stopped feeling like that completely, but... I... I got better," Lori told her smiling lightly. "I have Carl and Rick."

Barbie nodded as the woman left the room. The thing is she had stopped feeling that numbness. It all began when she followed Daryl into the woods.

* * *

Barbara checked yet again on Ellie with Maggie sitting by the foot of her bed.

"Has she reacted or anything?" Barbara asked her because she had been gone with Daryl and then checking up on Lori.

Maggie shook her head, staring at Ellie, her face frowning in concern.

"I don't get it. Why is she like that?" Maggie asked, a bit desperately.

"Sometimes when someone has suffered a great shock the body can't just... shut down. We have to make sure she stays hydrated," Barbara replied. If she was honest, she was getting desperate too. She had rummaged through her books and the info she knew, but all the known-treatments required machines or drugs they didn't have. So they couldn't do anything but wait for her to wake up on her own.

"I'll bring an IV," her cousin replied and Barbara smiled at her.

"Thanks Mags."

Barbara sat with her sister and took her hand, her eyes on Ellie's blank face.

"Wake up, Ellie," she mumbled, squeezing her hand. "Wake up, sweetie. I need you."

* * *

Maggie returned with the IV full of water and Barbara hooked it on Ellie's arm. Both stared at the blonde teen lying on the bed as waiting for her to wake up any moment now. But they knew it wasn't going to happen.

They stayed there looking after her for two hours now. Barbara was worried about her sister, about her missing brother and Maggie for her dad and Glenn. But if Barbara was honest, there was something else keeping her awake. Some kind of feelings. No, not feelings, but it was a fact that she hadn't been willing to admit until a few hours ago to her now ex-boyfriend. She didn't have her sister to talk, but Maggie had proven to be a confident a good adviser.

"I think... I think I like Daryl," she mumbled after two hours of sitting there in silence.

Barbara turned to Maggie and the older woman nodded, a bit distracted.

"I know. You told me."

"I mean... like-like," Barbara specified with a significant look.

The information seemed to down in Maggie then, who turned at her surprised.

"Oh... What about Blake?" "We broke up," Barbara replied looking down.

"You two break up or you dump him?"

Maggie asked, knowing her cousin too well.

Barbara turned to Maggie and raised her eyebrows.

"It was mutual."

Maggie nodded.

"So what? What are you waiting for? He's camping out there all alone. Why don't you go and warm him a bit?" Maggie told her with a suggestive smile and Barbara couldn't help but chuckle.

"No. No... I..." Her smile faded. "I don't know what to do. Nothing has happened with..."

"Daryl?"

Maggie said and Barbara shook her head. She couldn't even talk about him. That wasn't a good sign.

"Do you want something to happen?" Maggie asked her then.

"I'm not sure," Barbara admitted. "Ever since Dad, I've been like ... I haven't felt much."

Maggie nodded.

"Yeah. I noticed."

"And Daryl... he just brought out something in me. My will to fight, to keep going. Even after what happen at the barn."

Maggie stared at her. She remembered gloomily the day they arrived at the farm. They all looked pale and like they didn't know where they were. Ellie had cried, but she had just disappeared. It was like she hadn't cared about her dad, but Maggie knew she had been hiding her first weeks it was like she was a robot. Slowly she started smiling and acting normal, but it felt somehow restricted.

These days Maggie had seen her cousin been actually happy. She looked energized, lighter.

"Go for it."

Barbara looked at Maggie with raised eyebrows.

"I don't want to hurt Blake. I don't want to rub it on his face."

Maggie shook her head.

"He's a big kid. He can take it. But life's too short and shorter these days. There's no place for drama anymore. If you want something, just go get it."

Barbara smirked at her.

"Are you speaking out of experience?"

Maggie chuckled.

"Yes. I tried to avoid Glenn and told myself it was nothing but it wasn't true. I care for him. I love him. And I don't wanna waste time anymore."

Maggie's admission took her by surprise. Not the fact she like Glenn, that was pretty much obvious, but the fact that she loved him. What was love these days anyway?

"Yes, I guess you're right. But I don't even know if I want something like that with Daryl," Barbara told Maggie. The older woman saw her cousin's expression and she shook her head. She had been there many times. She hadn't gone after some guy because of her fear of rejection. But Barbara couldn't live like that, trying to avoid hurting. Life was just starting to hurt them and didn't seem like it was going to stop any time soon.

"Well, why don't you find out? He's out there," Maggie said, but Barbara shook her head.

"I've already left Ellie alone enough time. Maybe when Brett and Hershel are here. When she's better."

Maggie nodded and decided that she would try and help her. Barbie had been through enough things to keep herself from a bit of happiness, even if it was with a redneck. The thought made her laugh.

"What?" Barbara turned to her with a smile.

"Daryl doesn't really seem like your type," Maggie teased her.

Barbara blushed a little, but couldn't disagree.

"Oh, he's so far from it, it's almost funny. But you know. He's so much more than what he looks like. He's an ass, don't get me wrong. But he's smart and he listens. He cares."

"He better. Or I'll set him straight," Maggie said with a teasing smile. Barbara smiled at her a bit.

"I... don't say anything, Mags. Blake and I just broke up and, like I said, I'm not even sure I care that much for Daryl."

Maggie stopped smiling, Barbie's words taking her by surprise.

"Ow... so you just like him? You don't have feelings for him?"

Barbara shook her head and when Maggie looked at her. She knew she was being honest.

"Nope. You know, I haven't cared for anyone in a while. Even Blake... well, when all this started, we have been together for two months. I haven't started to feel love, you know. I don't work that way. And with everything happening... I don't think I can care for him or Daryl or any guy anymore."

"Well, that's fair. Everyone feels and thinks differently. Just make sure he knows that," Maggie said, thinking about how much the world had changed Barbie. She looked much colder now. But actually it was just her almost perfect poker face. Barbie cared. Barbie had feelings, but those feelings scared the shit out of her so it was easier to pretend. To avoid an attachment.

"Where do you think Hershel went?" Barbara asked her after a pause. She didn't want to keep talking about her feelings.

"Rick, where Glenn and Brett went to find him hopefully," Maggie replied, her demeanor changing quickly. She was worried sick and Barbara couldn't blame her. She hadn't been that worried about Brett when she went to talk to Daryl, but that had been a few hours ago and still there was no sign of them. Barbara was starting to get desperate. She already had lost her parents; she wasn't ready to give up any of her siblings.

* * *

Next morning Barbara and Maggie were in Elle's room checking on her when Andrea walked in. Barbara was checking her sister's pulse and Maggie was sitting on the end of the bed, chewing on her thumb.

"How is she?" Andrea asked them from the doorway.

"Dehydrated," Barbara replied, glancing at Andrea before putting a hand on her sister's forehead.

"I put an IV last night to help her. But she needs it again. It's all I can do without meds or certain machines," Barbara said and straightened up but Maggie stood up first.

"I'll go for it."

"Thank you," Barbie smiled at her cousin and Maggie left the room.

Andrea smiled at her before entering the room.

"I'm going crazy," Barbara admitted feeling exhausted and upset. "I think I may be forgetting something."

The brunette looked at her sister and grabbed her hand.

"Hey. Can I get you anything?" Andrea offered her gently. The sight of the sisters reminded her of Amy, and she felt this sudden need to help them.

Barbara shook her head, though.

"No, thanks. I just want my brother and Hershel to be back," the girl said sighting and looking down at Ellie.

"She'll be okay," Andrea assured her with a kind smile. "You just need to be strong for her."

"I was just thinking about..." Barbara stopped herself without hiding her smile and shook her head. "Never mind."

"No, no. I'd love to hear," Andrea told her and Barbara smiled at her.

"This one time at Thanksgiving... I was back from my first year of college and we had to go to our grandmother's... We didn't like it there. She was always entitled and rude and racist and made dinners uncomfortable for everybody. But this time I had brought my new boyfriend from college and I thought it would be funny to sneak upstairs while the others were in the living room drinking."

"Oh boy," Andrea replied, amused with a smile because that sounded like something she would do.

"Yep, oh boy, indeed," Barbara replied, chuckling and shaking her head. "She was twelve at that time and didn't understand the concept of sneaking out. She followed us and well, caught us and started screaming because she thought Garrett was hurting me.

Everyone ran upstairs and I barely had time to dress and pushed Garrett to the bathroom where he finished dressing up and sneaked out the window," Barbara laughed remembering how embarrassed she had been but it seemed so funny now.

"Brett was there first and figures out what's going on and we start to fight. And she is just looking at us confused. And then everybody comes and my dad says: 'what the hell is going on?' And before Brett can rat me out, Ellie just turns and says we were practicing some cheerleading."

Barbara finished her story laughing a bit and Andrea smiled at her too.

"And did they believe you?"

"Nope, but then my grandmother started a ranting against one of her friends and was pretty much forgotten. She understood later what was going on and was freaked out."

Barbara looked up to her sister then. She looked so tiny and young. She felt her watering up. She just wanted her back. She needed her back.

* * *

Shane, Daryl, Andrea and T-Dog were reading the truck to go when the car appeared on the dirt road. They all stopped and turned to see.

The car stopped in a cloud of dirt in front of the house and Rick, Glenn, Hershel and Brett came out of the car. They all looked exhausted and had blood on their clothes. Lori and Carl come down from the porch and Barbara, Maggie, Carol, Blake and Patricia came out of the house.

"Dad!" Carl laughed with relief, running to his father, and burying his face on Rick's stomach. The man held his son back and then hugged Lori with his other arm.

"Brett!" Barbara cried, running to her brother and thrown herself at his arms. He engulfed her tiny frame and hugged her close, lifting her in the air.

Maggie ran too and Hershel opened his arms but his daughter passed by, right to Glenn's embrace.

"You're okay," she said hugging him tight but he didn't return her excitement.

Hershel just kept walking, a bit annoyed by his daughter.

"Patricia, prepare the shed for surgery," he told the woman walking heavily on her. "Come Barbie, quick."

The girl pulled back from her brother confused and looked down at him.

"Are you hurt?"

"No."

"Then who..?"

"Who the hell is that?" T-Dog's interrupted everybody else, noticing the extra guy, with the blindfold in the back of the car. The rest of the group turned to the guy and then to Rick.

"That's Randall," Glenn said.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Rushed decisions

...

"We couldn't just leave him behind. He would've bled out, if he lived that long." Rick explained to the group.

"It's gotten bad in town," Glenn added.

Almost everyone was there, sitting around the dining room. Hershel and Barbara were fixing up Randall, Elle hadn't waked up yet, and who knew where Daryl was.

"What do we do with him?" Andrea asked what everybody was pondering.

At that moment Hershel and Barbara walked in, cleaning their hands from the hurried surgery, they had performed in the other room.

"We've repaired his calf muscle as best we can, but he'll probably have nerve damage," Hershel explained.

"So he won't be able to stand for at least a week," Barbara added, and was conscious that everyone listened to her with seriousness, giving her the same authority that Hershel had.

"When he is, we give him a canteen, take him out to the main road, send him on his way," Rick said to everybody, matter-of-factly.

"Isn't that the same as leaving him for the walkers?" Andrea quickly intervened, frowning.

"He'll have a fighting chance," Rick replied.

As soon as he said that, Daryl entered the house as silently as possible. Nobody turned or acknowledged him except Carol, who smiled lightly and he nodded back at her. Then he looked up to Barbara, who had noticed him as well. The girl smiled back at him, before putting a strange expression and looking away, tucking a stray of hair that had escaped her ponytail during the rush surgery.

Daryl frowned, confused. He walked to the back of the room, leaning against a wall.

"Just gonna let him go?" Shane questioned Rick, incredulously. "He knows where we are."

"He was blindfolded the whole way here," Rick assured them, dismissing Shane's words, condescendingly. "He's not a threat."

"Not a threat," Shane repeated, annoyed. "How many of them were there? You killed three of their men, you took one of them hostage, but they just ain't gonna come looking?"

Barbara looked at the man, almost glaring. She hadn't liked him that much from the beginning, but each time he kept pushing Rick to his limit, and she just felt something off about him. She had wondered for a while now, what had happened to Otis and if he really had died because of his own sacrifice. Barbara had come to the conclusion that that probably wasn't the truth.

"They left him for dead," Rick snapped exasperated. "No one is looking."

"We should still post a guard," T-Dog said.

"He's passed out right now and will be for hours," Barbie explained shrugging.

She felt Daryl's eyes on her and she met his stare. He smiled softly and she quickly looked away, panicking a little. She felt her heart thumping in her chest and felt the urge to leave the room. What the hell was wrong with her?

"You know what? I'm gonna go get him some flowers and candy," Shane said sarcastically, before scoffing annoyed and leaving the room. "Look at this, folks," he called them as he left, as he was dismissing them. "We back in fantasy land!"

Hershel looked at him angrily and followed him. Barbie snapped out of her messed up mind and turned to the men.

"You know, we haven't even dealt with what you did at my barn yet," Hershel told Shane, who stopped and turned to him. "Let me make this perfectly clear, once and for all: this is my farm," Hershel said firmly. "Now I wanted you gone. Rick talked me out of it, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. So do us both a favor keep your mouth shut."

Shane glared at the old man before turning around and leaving the house, because he couldn't fight that.

Hershel turned around and returned to the living room.

"Look. We're not gonna do anything about it today," Rick told him. "Let's just cool off."

As everyone scattered around, some leaving the house Daryl looked at Barbara. Despite her effort, she couldn't help but look up and her eyes met his. She looked like she wanted to say something but then she looked away, turned and walked quickly into the kitchen.

Daryl feeling annoyed and a bit disappointed walked to the door. Carol then approached him. The man looked down at her and her kind of sad eyes annoyed him even most. He stared her down and then left the house without waiting on her or saying anything. He wasn't going to say he was sorry so if she was waiting an apology she was sorely mistaken, he thought angrily. Also, what was Barbara's deal? She acted like she cared for him. She hugged him, she made sure he was okay and ate something and then she couldn't look at him. Maybe she had broken up with Blake. Or maybe she had decided he wasn't worthy. Or maybe she hadn't even been interested at all. Maybe she was being just friendly and he had made her feel awkward. That didn't settle with him well. He assumed it was probably that, but it didn't stop him from getting angrier with her.

* * *

When Maggie entered the room, Hershel was hovering over Ellie, with his hand on her forehead, checking her signs. Barbara was standing next to him, her hand against her mouth and her eyes fixed on Hershel's hands. Brett was sitting on the other side of the bed, grasping his little sister's hand.

"Has she eaten?" Hershel asked taking Elle's pulse.

Barbara shook her head.

"There wasn't anything I could give her through the IV."

"I'll give her a sedative to stop her body from working too hard," Hershel replied with a calmed but strained voice.

"I already with her one. It was the only thing I could do and kept her hydrated," Barbara quickly replied. Hershel turned to her, looking a bit surprised and smiled, nodding.

Then he turned and his eyes met Maggie's. She couldn't hold it up. She never could.

"You were drinking," she said with an accusing voice.

"That was the least of my worries," Hershel replied looking away.

"You left and we didn't know what to do!" Maggie cried, her eyes starting to water. Hershel looked up to her and then he turned to Brett and to Ellie, before looking down at his watch.

Maggie glared at him and left the room angry and hurt.

Hershel looked down at Ellie, the guilt starting to eat him up again.

"I'm sorry," he said without looking at the brunette next to him. Barbara stopped and looked at the man. After a couple of seconds, he looked up.

"I think I'm not the one you should be apologizing to."

* * *

Ellie woke up when the sun was setting up. She looked disoriented and her body was trembling too much. Barbara didn't notice at first, but then she let out a yell and threw herself at her sister.

"Oh my God, Ellie... I was so worried... But you're fine."

And she was. Her pressure was fine. She had no fever. She had no head traumas. She just needed water and food. Maggie brought her dinner and Barbara helped her to the bathroom where she took a shower. Once clean, she ate up and then Hershel let Barbara check up her sister, making one or two observations.

But Barbie knew there was something else wrong. Elle was so pale and that was saying something. From the two of them, Barbie had always been the pale one, never even been able to tan, and had to use bronze in cream. She looked like a jellyfish on the beach but no Elle. She had always had a nice healthy tan color and now, she looked like a wax doll. Plus she had dark circles under her eyes that just made it more noticeable. And she was also quiet. In fact, she almost didn't spoke. She just responded with yeses and nos. She looked sick, as if she hadn't sleep in days.

Barbara didn't like it one bit. It felt like something bad was going to happen. So this time, Barbara stayed with Elle, day and night. Almost forgetting to sleep. She had failed her once. She wouldn't do it again.

* * *

"Rick said anything to you about Glenn when they got back from town?" Maggie finally asked Lori. They were on the kitchen preparing lunch.

Five days had passed and Glenn had been pushing her away. She tried to act nonchalant but she wasn't being very subtle.

At Maggie's question, Barbie turned to her. She knew Maggie had been confused, hurt and upset by Glenn's behavior. She had already ranted to Barbie about that and she had told her she should ask Glenn directly but Maggie didn't like that option. She couldn't ask her father so the best option without asking Rick directly, was asking his wife.

"Just that it had gotten pretty bad," Lori replied shrugging, cutting veggies, not noticing Maggie's undertone.

"He's not the same," Maggie commented. "Says he froze. Blames me. Says I got inside his head."

Barbara down at the chicken she was grilling in the pan, and turned it around, trying to not think about a certain someone living on the edge of the farm.

"He came back, that's what matters," Lori replied taking all the cut vegetables and took them to a pot. "Men have to do certain things, you know that... And they're either gonna blame the little woman as the reason they do them or the reason they don't. I'll tell you something: what happens out there happens out there. And we're just trying to keep it together till they get back."

Barbie took the chicken out of the fire and put in a plate with already cut vegetables on it. Then the girl put it on a tray and turned around to grab a knife and fork.

"Things were good" Maggie argued. "Maybe I-"

"Glenn's a big boy. He makes his own choices," Lori cut Maggie off, munching on a piece of apple. "And then you... do you have anything to apologize for?"

Maggie shook her head and Lori shrugged as Barbie walked to where they were to put the utensils on the tray.

"Tell him to man up and pull himself together. Just don't say 'man up'. It never goes well."

Barbara froze for a moment at that, but then lay down the knife and fork on the napkin. The girl knew Lori had no idea of how things between she and Daryl went, but her words had struck a chord on her. The last five days she had been holed up in the house taking care of her sister, or more like annoying her. Part was because she was concerned for her and she blamed herself for her condition. But the other reason was that she just didn't want to face Daryl. Barbie knew he never entered the house and he didn't even come around it that often, so she didn't have to worry about running into him.

She felt bad though. She owed him an explanation but... She wasn't even sure what she was thinking was right. She wasn't sure Daryl had feeling for her and she didn't want to embarrass herself by confronting him. Hell, she wasn't even sure what she felt for him. True, she was attracted to him but, was that all? Even if it wasn't, it wasn't just a good idea anyways. She had the bad examples of Maggie suffering for Glenn and whatever that was going on between Rick and Lori.

"Let me just get this to Elle," Barbie said, snapping out her thoughts and stepped to grab the tray with the food but Lori was faster.

"I got it," Lori told her.

"But—" Barbara tried to protest but Lori shook her head.

"You have been five days holed up in here. Go out and take some fresh air."

Then she turned to Maggie and smiled.

"Both of you."

Lori said nodding her head to the door. The girl turned to Maggie who nodded as well and they both headed to the door.

* * *

"Knock knock," Lori said, opening the door. Elle, who had been lying on her side, turned around and sat in the bed as the woman walked in and left the tray on the bedside table.

"How about this," Lori told Ellie softly but cheerfully. "You eat up all your food, we'll get you up and out of here and go take a walk," Lori looked at the girl, while burying her hands on the back pockets of her jeans. "What do you say? It'll do good to be outside."

"Are you pregnant?" Ellie asked as if she hadn't heard Lori.

The woman looked down, not expecting that question but turned to the girl, forcing a smile.

"Yes, I am."

"Why?" Ellie frowned.

Lori shrugged.

"It just happened," Lori replied ironically.

"You think it'll make a difference?" Ellie asked her in a cold empty voice. Lori looked at the girl taken aback but she didn't take it that personally. She had been through enough bad things already.

"Of course it will," Lori assured the girl with all the conviction she could muster. "You eat something."

* * *

Barbie went to brush her teeth and make sure her hair didn't look horrible. She scolded herself mentally because she shouldn't care about that stupid stuff or waste time doing her hair, especially now, but still she couldn't help herself. She hadn't seen him in a while.

After that she left the house and went to the far side of the farm, looking for Daryl. It was time to explain some things.

* * *

Half an hour later, Lori knocked again before opening, her eyes going directly to the tray that had left untouched.

"Couldn't eat a thing huh?" She asked, but as soon as she looked up, she noticed Elle broken face and her tears.

The woman walked to the girl and knelt next to her bed.

"I know how hard it is," Lori told her gently, looking at her but Elle seemed like she didn't see her. "I tried for days to reach my mom, and get her on the phone. I can only assume..."

"It's just so pointless," Ellie declared in a fragile empty voice, sobbing. "I lost my mom, my dad…"

"No," Lori said softly, shaking her head. "You have Barbie and Brett, and Hershel and Maggie, Patricia... And you've gotta stay strong for them." She made a pause but the girl kept crying. "I wish I could promise you it would be all right in the end. I can't... but we can make now alright. And we have to."

Ellie finally turned to her, tears still running down her cheeks. Her eyes, however, still looked like they were very far.

"Thank you."

Lori nodded smiling at her and stood up.

"I'll be right back. We'll go take that walk," Lori reached and smoothed the hair out of the girl's face before turning around grabbing the tray and leaving the room.

Lori took the tray down but it wasn't until she reached the kitchen sink when she noticed there was something missing. She ran upstairs quickly, entering Elle's room without knocking this time. She found the girl lying on the bed, her back to the door.

"Elle? You give it to me, sweetheart. You don't wanna do this," Lori asked the girl worriedly. She watched Elle carefully who didn't move or say anything for a moment. Then the girl slowly pulled the knife from beneath her pillow and handed it to Lori. She grabbed and left the room quickly without a word, her face frowning with worry.

* * *

Andrea was keeping watch on top of the RV, when Lori approached her running and with a worried expression on her face.

"Andrea, have you seen Barbie or Hershel?" Lori asked her almost breathless.

"I haven't seen Hershel, but I saw Barbie," the blonde responded, shielding her face with her hand from the sun. "I think she went out with Daryl like twenty minutes ago," Andrea replied quickly.

"Could you find her for me? I've gotta get back to the house," Lori said quickly already stepping back. Andrea nodded confused.

"Of course."

* * *

Barbie found Daryl where she had found him the last time. He had a new collection of squirrels on the stone wall and he was making new arrows. He didn't look up, but she knew he could tell it was her. He looked a bit different. He looked dirtier than she remembered, but he was wearing a clean sleeveless shirt and a vest.

"Hey," she said waving to him a bit awkwardly.

He barely looked up his shoulder before replying:

"Hey."

He didn't stop working so Barbie stood up there, watching him, trying to come up with something to say.

"You don't have to do shit," Daryl suddenly snap just as the girl opened her mouth.

"Excuse me?" Barbie frowned. Daryl dropped the arrow to the floor and turned to her. He was angry...

"You got what you wanted. You learned how to use a bow. You don't have to avoid me now. Things just'll go back how the use to be," he snapped, getting even angrier and standing up.

"I don't get what you're saying. You think I don't want to talk to you anymore?" Barbara said thought, he made sense. She had been avoiding him, but for a different reason.

"You've been avoiding me," he snapped.

"Yes. You and my brother and everyone basically," the girl said quickly and he looked at her angrily.

"Don't play dumb, girl. You know what I mean."

He looked at her for a few seconds before looking down at his arrow and resuming his work. Barbara sighed.

"Fine. I... I just didn't want to leave Elle."

Daryl snorted.

"I'm serious," Barbie replied, sitting in the grass and crossing her legs. Daryl stopped working, listening, but he didn't look up. Barbara sighed again. "She's... I don't know. I would like to say she's fine, but she looks like a wax doll. She barely eats. She barely speaks, and... I feel like she's going to do something stupid if I don't watch her..."

"She's not a little kid. You cannot tie her down," Daryl replied gruffly, but this time it wasn't so angry, it was just like how he was. He didn't look at her. He was still pissed at her so he didn't understand why he didn't feel that much angry so suddenly.

"There's a thought," Barbie replied sarcastically and she swore she saw one of the corners of his lips lightly curling up. "But I don't know what to do. I want her to snap out of it, and I know she needs time, but it's driving me crazy. And I've been in a very bad mood. I fought with Hershel two days ago. I yelled at Maggie last night. I just... I didn't want to lash it on you."

This time Daryl look up but didn't say nothing.

"I failed her," Barbara continued, her tone changing. She looked down at her hands. "She needed me and I couldn't do nothing."

"You said there wasn't anything to do," Daryl said in the softest grunt he could muster. She looked up and the man shrugged. "Hershel couldn't do anything either."

The girl was silent for a moment.

"Yes, but I'm her sister..."

"It's not your fault," Daryl cut her off and Barbara looked up at him surprised.

Daryl buffed and looked down at his hands.

"When we didn't find Merle I blame myself," he admitted in a low voice. Barbie didn't say nothing, afraid he would suddenly shut off. "And I did it for a long time, but I shouldn't have. Sometimes shit just happen. Shit you can't control."

"So I shouldn't do nothing?" The girl asked frowning. Daryl looked up and shook his head.

"Merle was a dumb son of a bitch. Sooner or later something like that was going to happen to him. But, for what you have told me, your sister sounds smarter. Not a lot but..."

"Hey," Barbie smiled and threw him an acorn completely missing him. Daryl couldn't suppress a light smile and raised an eyebrow.

"So your aim sucks again? Thought I had taught you something."

The girl frowned with fake indignation.

"Look Dixon-"

"Barbie!"

Both turned and watched Andrea walking fast to them. She stopped and looked down at the brunette girl sitting on the grass.

"Lori is looking for you," Andrea said, a bit breathless for running.

"Is she alright?" Barbara asked concerned, standing up quickly.

"Yeah, she looked fine. I think it's about Elle."

Andrea words hit her like a blow. She knew it, she knew it... She turned to Daryl, shocked, and for a second she didn't know what to do.

"Go," Daryl urged her with a nod.

The girl nodded and ran as fast as she could to the house.

Daryl watched her until she disappeared, and he resumed his arrow-making. There was always someone interrupting them. So many damn people. He sighed. He was still angry with her but more with himself because he was forgiving her already. What the hell?

* * *

"Have you lost your freaking mind?" Barbara snapped at her sister, trying so hard to not yell. Elle however, didn't seem to mind. She was just sitting on her bed, looking down at her hands with an annoying blank expression on her face. "What if Brett finds out?"

"What you're going to do? Kill me for trying to... kill me?" Elle replied sarcastically and Barbara had the urge to slap her, to shake her, to do anything to just make her stop. She took a deep breath and walked to the bed, sitting down on it.

"Don't be so selfish," Barbara said angrily. "It would destroy him. And me, and Hershel, and Maggie."

"This is not about them," the blonde said stubbornly.

"No, it's about you," Barbie said shaking her head. "It's always about you. You and your dramas-"

"Oh please don't start!" Elle snap.

"No? But that's always what you do! You think you act like an adult when you're really acting like a brat!" Barbie yelled at her. "Mom and Dad would be ashamed to learn they raised such a coward."

"Well, they can't because they were eaten by rotten corpses!" Elle yelled back. "And you question why I want to do it?! It's all gone to shit out there!"

"We are surviving!"

"I don't want to survive! I want my old life back or I want to die!"

"You are just thinking about you! What about me and Brett? We cannot take another funeral! Not yours!"

At that Elle stopped. She looked at Barbara like she had finally realized something.

"You can't avoid it," Elle said softly. "We should both do it."

Barbara was taken aback.

"What?"

"At the same time," Elle said smiling softly. "Help each other. We should tell Brett too."

"No, Elle..."

"It's hard to do it but..."

"No, Elle, listen..."

"We can do it so it's peaceful, easy."

"Stop talking like that, dammit!" Barbara snapped raising from the bed.

"That way we'll go our way and not ripped apart by those things. Or we'll be forced to do it when the farm and this house is overrun."

"No, Ellie..."

"No one can protect us," Elle said.

Barbara shook her head.

"That's not true."

"Who, Blake? Daryl?" Her sister said sarcastically and Barbara glared at her. "I heard what happened. Rick will save his family, the others too. We're alone. You, me, Patricia, with only Brett and Hershel against a whole world of those things. I don't wanna be gutted. I wanna go tonight in this house with you and Brett beside me. Please."

Barbara looked at her sister with a mix of fury and desperation. She turned away suddenly to leave but then changed her mind and turned to her.

"Hear me well, Isabelle," Barbara told her in a low and threatening voice. "Because next time I hear you talk this way, I literally will knock sense into you. You're not dying on my watch!"

Elle didn't look up nor move and neither Barbara. She knew all of these it had been hard on her but she hadn't imagine she would wanted to end it all. She had never considered it. She had her and Brett to think about. And the fact that she had just gave up...

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts and Andrea appeared on the doorway. Glancing at Elle, Barbie walked to her.

"You can't sit on top of her," Andrea told her gently.

"I can't leave her alone," Barbara replied, shaking her head.

"You're gonna have to. You're exhausted," Andrea insisted. "Go get some air. I'll sit with her. Come on. Wash up, get something to eat. I got it."

Barbie looked at her and then at Elle. She needed to calm down or she'll shake her sister until her head felt down. She nodded softly.

"Alright. Thanks, Andrea."

Barbie took a deep breath and left the room going downstairs to the kitchen. Andrea closed the door and then turned to the blonde sitting in the bed. She stood there in silence a moment before Elle looked up at her.

"Aren't you gonna say something?" She asked Andrea a bit defiantly.

Andrea shook her head and then crossed the room to the door and opened it.

"Is this what you want? The pain doesn't go away. You just make room for it."

And then left the room without closing the door, leaving Elle alone.

* * *

After Barbara had a glass of water and decided she was calm enough to not want to kill her sister herself. She went back to her room but the door was wide open. Her heart sank to her knees.

"Elle?" she asked entering the room but it was empty. "Elle?" She called her louder.

Then there was a crash on the bathroom and she heard her cry. Her blood froze and her heart raced.

"Ellie?!" She ran to the bathroom but the door was closed. She shook the nub and hit the door desperately. "Ellie?"

"Barbie?" Lori entered the room looking at the brunette girl.

"She's in there. I heard a glass breaking!" Barbie explained quickly hitting the door harder. "Ellie, are you all right? Ellie, please!"

"I left her with Andrea!" Barbara explained to Lori, frantically trying the nob and hitting the door.

Lori turned to her at that but Barbie went to look for the key at her bedside table. She always kept there her keys at home, but it was there.

"I can't find the key!" Barbara said starting to lose it and went back to knock on the door. "Ellie, please! I'm not angry anymore, just please open the door! Please, Ellie!"

Lori walked to the fireplace and grabbed a fire poker.

"Barbie, I got this."

The girl moved out of the way and with the poker the woman opened the door.

Elle was standing in front of the mirror that it was shattered and turned around crying and holding her wrist. She had cut it open, the blood dropping to the floor.

"I'm sorry," the girl cried and a wave of relieved hit Barbara. She shook her head, and crossed the space, hugging her sister tightly.

* * *

Four or five hours later, Daryl decided to discretely check what had happened. He just walked near the house, hoping to catch Barbie out there. He reached the house just as Andrea approached running and Barbara sprung out of the house like a bull into the arena. Lori was walking behind her, a bit worried. Daryl frowned, noticing blood stains in her shirt.

"Where were you?!" Barbara roared in such a way that Andrea stopped dead and even Daryl raised his eyebrows surprised. Barbie was even trembling out of anger.

"I heard. Is she all right?" Andrea replied too calm in comparison to the brunette.

"She would be if you had stayed with her. Where the hell were you?!" Barbara snapped hoping for a good explanation or she would rip her eyes out.

"How bad is she?" Andrea asked ignoring Barbie's question.

"It wasn't deep," Lori replied.

Andrea sighed and smiled relieved.

"She wants to live. She made her decision," she said in such an enlightening way it made Barbara angrier.

"She tried to kill herself!" Barbara spat.

"No, she didn't."

"Hershel is stitching her wrist right now!"

"She'll live," Andrea replied matter-of-factly.

Daryl recognized the signs just in time. He had seen the same face in wild animals before they jumped on their preys. He turned to Barbie and caught her on time before she launched herself at Andrea.

"What's your freaking problem?! Huh! I trusted you with her! She wasn't in her right mind!" The angry girl screamed at her, as her hands tried to push Daryl away and reached Andrea.

Daryl tightened his hold around her waist because the girl was strong. He was actually impressed.

"She's not a kid. She knew what she wanted!" Andrea yelled back, just a bit intimidated.

"She had been attacked by her father's corpse! Of course she wasn't on her freaking mind! She has been through a lot of things and you, you selfish...!"

"I lost my sister! You're not the only one with loses, you know!" Andrea replied angrily. "And if she wants to take her life...!"

"She'll have to kill me first," Barbara yelled and stopped squirming. Daryl let her go tentatively but stayed close just in case.

"She's my sister!" She told Andrea, glaring at the woman. "I make the decisions not you or anyone else! You wanna help?! Do some laundry for a change! You're not keeping anyone safe with your guards. The last time you shot something and actually hit it, you almost kill Daryl! Stay away from her! From both of us! Don't you dare step foot inside this house again!"

Andrea turned around mad and taken aback because of what had happened. Just then Lori approached Barbie who was still breathless after the yelling match.

"I'm not gonna say she was right, but Ellie has made her choice," Lori told the girl and Barbie looked up at her. "She wants to live and now she knows it. And sometimes you have to cross the line."

Lori, noticing Daryl, was still standing next to them, squeezed the girl's shoulder and left them alone.

Barbara glared at Andrea's back, as she recovered her breathing, and then turned to Daryl raising an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"I was trying to keep you from loosing a tooth," Daryl replied, raising his hands. Barbie rolled her eyes, huffing in a very similar way to him.

"Please. I would have ripped of her hair off," she said angrily and he rose his eyebrows.

"She's tough. There would have been no winners there."

She buffed again and then she walked to the nearest tree and kicked it viciously.

"Hey..." Daryl walked to her, but he let her kicked it a couple of times before he could pulled her back.

"I'm... I'm sick..." The girl said angrily and agitated. "I can't believe she tried... A part of me knows she has a point..."

"Bullshit," Daryl interrupted, frowning. "You're not going to try that stupid shit now, are you?"

Barbie shook her head.

"No. I'll never do it but... things can only get worse."

She looked back at the house and sighed.

"Whenever I hope things just go well... they just get worse. It's all so screwed."

Daryl shrugged.

"Things can change."

She turned to him and shook her head. There was such hopelessness in her eyes that made him angry.

"I used to believe that but..."

"You didn't learn a thing from me," he spat at her.

Barbara looked up, frowning confused.

"What?"

"I thought you were tough. That you were a survivor," he kept going, angrily.

"I am," the girl said, frowning at his tone. What the hell?

"Well act like one and stop whining like a stupid brat!" He snapped again at her, getting her angrier again.

"I'm getting tired on your attitude here," she replied coldly.

"No attitude, darling," he sneered and she glared at him.

"What's wrong with you? I haven't done a thing to you for you to treat me like that!"

"Really?"

"Yes!"

He looked at her face for a moment, noticing she either didn't know what he was talking about or she was a good liar. He stepped closer and looked down on her.

"You know, you're a real bitch."

He didn't even finished the sentence when her slap shook him. It burned him, it angered him. It reminded him of all the people who had screwed him over and over and that this girl had been toying with him like he were his bitch.

"I know you think you can't say whatever you want to whoever you want, but you won't treat me like that!" She yelled at him angrily and he grabbed his wrist angrily.

"And you're not going to hit me ever again!"

"Hand me off, you jerk!"

She tried to push him away but he was seething. He grabbed her by the arms and for a second Barbara though he was going to hurt her, at least before he looked down on her and his lips crashed against hers.

The impact almost made her trip but he caught her. His hand slid from her arms and one wrapped itself around her waist and the other buried on her hair pulling her closer to him. She was so shocked that it took her a few seconds before she could react but her body reacted on its own accord. Her hand closed grabbing his shirt and the other wrapped around his neck pulling him to her, and she kissed him back just as ferociously. Their kiss toned down gradually, so when they pulled back to breath, it had become gentle but needy.

Daryl rested his forehead on hers and they looked at each other a bit blankly, chests rising and falling violently, not sinking in just yet what had just happened. The man raised a hand to her cheek and his fingers had barely graze her skin when the sound of a car startled them. They pulled back as if they had been burned. Daryl took a deep breath and stepped to her trying to reach her hand, but Barbara didn't notice. She stepped back and ran away quickly, leaving him standing there, feeling a complete idiot.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Facing up consequences

...

"I told you..." Randall cried, shrinking against the wall.

"You told me shit!" Daryl snapped walking to him. Randall looked at Daryl desperately.

"I barely knew those guys. I met them on the road."

"How many in your group?"

Randall didn't answer right away so Daryl pulled out his hunting knife.

"Uh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Come on, man. Come on."

Daryl walked to him and the guy screamed. But Daryl just bluffed, hitting the floor between Randall's legs.

"How many?!" He roared.

"Uh, thirty-thirty, guys" the guy replied shaking.

"Where?" Daryl asked angrily.

"Uh..."

Daryl grabbed the blood-soaked bandage and ripped it off. Randall cried out in pain.

"I don't know. I swear. We were never anyplace more than a night," he cried.

"Scouting?" Daryl asked placing his knife close to his wound. "Planning on staying local?"

"I- I don't know. They- they left me behind," Randall yelled, but Daryl knew he wasn't telling him something.

"Did you ever pick off a scab?" Daryl asked his knife rubbing the edge of his wound.

"Come on, man!" Randall cried out panicked. "I'm-I'm trying to cooperate!"

"Start real slow at first," Daryl told sadistically, starting to put pressure on the knife. Randall grunt.

"No, please..."

"Sooner or later, you've just gotta rip it off!" Daryl snapped pressing the knife and Randall couldn't take the pain.

"Okay. Okay," the boy stammered. "They have weapons- Heavy stuff, automatics. But I didn't do anything!"

"Your boys shot at my boys, tried to take this farm," Daryl snapped pressing lightly the knife. "You just went along for the ride? You're trying to tell me you're innocent?"

"Yes!" Randall shouted and Daryl stopped lightly. He took a shaky breath.

"These-these people took me in. Not just guys, a whole group of them," Randall said still sobbing lightly. "Men and women, kids too. Just like you people. Thought I'd have a better chance with them, you know? But... we go out, scavenge... A man and his two daughters... teenagers, you know? Real young. Real cute."

Daryl stopped and turned slowly to him, his face blank, his blood startling to boil. He didn't know why but Barbara and her sister come to his mind.

"Their daddy had to watch while these guys... they... And they didn't even kill him afterwards," Randall shook his head. "They just... They just made him watch as his daughters... They just...just... just left him there..." He made a pause and looked up. He saw the pure rage in Daryl's eyes and shook his head. "No, but I didn't touch those girls," he mumbled. "No, I swear I didn't to-"

Daryl kicked his injured leg and her yelped and cried scared. Daryl was just seeing red thinking of his group. Thinking of Barbie, and Elle, and Carol, Lori, Andrea, Maggie...

This guy had done something. Maybe he hadn't raped those girls but he had to do something about it and his blood just boiled as Randall cried.

"Please. Please. You gotta believe me, man. I'm not like that. I ain't like that."

Their situation just sank in Daryl. 30 guys, maybe more, heavily armed, rapists. They would find this farm, killed the men and then... Barbara popped into his mind again, cornered, crying, guys reaching for her...

"Please. Please, you gotta believe me-"

He didn't and he kicked and punched as hard as he could. They wouldn't touch her, nor her and no one of the women on his group.

* * *

Barbara, Maggie, Glenn, Dale, Carol and Carl were waiting in the camp, standing. In front of them were Carl and Lori putting out the fire and behind them Rick and Shane.

"So, what are you gonna do?" Lori asked her husband.

"We'd all feel better if we knew the plan," Carol told them.

"Is there a plan?" Andrea asked.

"We gonna keep him here?" Glenn joined in.

"We'll know soon enough," Rick said just as Daryl walked to them. Barbara noticed the blood on his knuckles and gulped. What had he done?

"Boy there's got a gang, thirty men. They have heavy artillery and they ain't looking to make friends," Daryl informed them. "They roll through here, our boys are dead. And our women, they're gonna..." His eyes met Barbara's and he quickly looked away. "They're gonna wish they were."

"What did you do?" Carol asked him.

"Had a little chat." He replied nonchalantly. Carol closed her eyes and walked back to the RV. Barbara crossed her arms and looked at Daryl but he wasn't looking at her.

"No one goes near this guy," Rick told the group.

"Rick, what are you gonna do?" Lori asked walking to him.

"We have no choice. He's a threat," Rick told her and then looked at the group. "We have to eliminate the threat."

"You're just gonna kill him?" Dale walked to him, frowning aghast.

"It's settled," Rick told the group, ignoring Dale. "I'll do it today." Then he walked away. Barbara looked at Daryl and stepped up to him but he turned around quickly, and left.

* * *

Daryl was putting his new arrows in his crossbow when he heard steps. For a moment he thought it was Barbara but the steps were different, heavier.

He looked up and saw Dale walking to him, a large branch on his hand. He sighed and kept working.

"The whole point of me coming up here is to get away from you people," Daryl told him.

"Gonna take more than that," Dale assured him throwing away the cane.

"Carol sent you?" Daryl asked him grabbing another arrow and putting in place.

"Carol's not the only one that's concerned about you... or you new role in the group," Dale replied watching him.

"Oh, man, I don't need my head shrunk," Daryl sighed exasperated. "This group's broken. I'm better off fending for myself."

"You act like you don't care," Dale noted.

"Yeah, it's 'cause I don't," Daryl replied, stating the obvious, grabbing his leather vest hanging on the stone wall.

"So live or die, you don't care what happens to Randall?"

"Nope," Daryl replied putting on his vest.

"Then why not stand with me, try to save the kid's life, if it really doesn't matter one way or the other?" Dale proposed him.

"Didn't peg you for a desperate son of a bitch," Daryl said putting the rest of his arrows on his bag.

"Your opinion makes a difference," Dale told him.

Daryl snorted.

"Man, ain't nobody looking at me for nothing," the young man replied, taking his crossbow from the ground and walking away but Dale didn't let him.

"Carol is. And Barbie. And I am. Right now," Dale told him and Daryl stopped and turned to him. "And you obviously, you have Rick's ear."

"Rick just looks to Shane," Daryl cut Dale off. "Let him."

Then he kept walking.

"You cared about what happened to Sofia," Dale called him again. Hearing that name, Daryl stopped and turned around looking at Dale a bit upset, but he continued: "Cared what it meant to the group. You care about Barbie. I've seen you with her. Torturing people? That isn't you. You're a decent man. So is Rick. Shane... He's different."

"Why's that?" Daryl asked. "'Cause he killed Otis?"

Dale's smile faded out and looked taken aback and his eyes widened. He walked to Daryl.

"He told you that?"

"He told some story..." Daryl shrugged. "How Otis covered him, saved his ass. He showed up with the dead guy's gun. Rick ain't stupid. If he didn't figure that out, it's 'cause he didn't wanna. It's like I said, group's broken."

And said that, Daryl turned around and walked away, leaving Dale alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Dale wasn't ready to give up despite the group. He found Barbara on the stables. The girl was grooming a caramel mare and the horse puffed, liking the caresses. The girl was smiling and mumbling sweet nothings as the brush rubbed against the horse skin.

The old man had to clear his throat to call her attention. Barbara gasped but turned and smiled.

"Dale."

"Hey, Barbie," the old man smiled back and walked to her. "She's gorgeous."

Barbara nodded.

"She is. And I think Roseleen knows it," she replied with a smirk patting the horse's neck and Dale chuckled.

"Well, she can flaunt it all she wants. She's a beauty," Dale replied. The girl nodded putting down the brush and then walked out of the loose to Dale.

"I'm sorry. Did you need something, Dale?" The girl asked placing her hands on the back of her shorts.

"Yes, I need to talk to you," Dale replied.

Barbara nodded, already guessing.

"Is this about Randall?"

"We cannot kill him. We cannot do that. That's... that's barbaric. That's not us."

Barbie looked up at Dale and nodded. She had made a sort of pact entering med school. She swore to always help people, even when it looked like there was no chance. Execution didn't fit into that exactly.

"I know. Believe me I..." She made a pause and sighed. "He's my age... But I mean, Rick is your leader. The leader. And Hershel, he's scared about what Daryl said. He wants to protect us. So there's no much I can do and I think we'll be out numbered if try to convince them."

The man nodded and took another step, wriggling his hands.

"You can convince Daryl. He'll talk to Rick," Dale suggested.

Barbara was a bit surprised but she figured everyone had seen her with Daryl around the farm and made their own assumptions. But he was wrong.

"I can't talk to Daryl," she replied, shaking her head, and looking down at the ground.

"He listens to you," Dale said. "He cares for you."

At that she looked up to him.

"No. He just sees for himself."

"Believe me, in the time I know him, I've never seen him care for anyone that much. Not even his brother," Dale assured her with a warm smile. The girl shrugged.

"We're just friends," she responded. He didn't say anything and when she looked up she found him staring at her.

"What?" She said, frowning.

"You shouldn't waste time," Dale responded gently. "My wife, she was taken away by cancer. And I'll give anything to have her back, even with the things as they are now. Daryl cares about you, and is more than just friendship. And it's none of my business, I know that, but I think you care for him too. I'm not here to tell you to do anything, just to consider how quick life is changing now. If you don't do that now, tomorrow you won't have the chance..."

His words ran in her head and she looked away a bit overwhelmed. She knew all that but...

"Please talk to Daryl about Randall," Dale asked her. "Even if he's mad at you, he'll listen. He'll talk to Rick."

Barbara looked up and she saw Dale turning to leave but he stopped and looked at her.

"Daryl doesn't think he's important to the group, but I know otherwise. If he reaches to Rick, he'll listen. Daryl's a good man and Rick has seen that too. But he doesn't believe me."

"So you want me to convince Daryl to talk to Rick?" Barbara asked him, crossing her arms.

"That and about his role in the group. He's important. And he's a good man. Someone should remind him. Some one he'll believe."

Barbara sighed but nodded.

"Okay, I'll talk to him."

Dale smiled at her and she couldn't help but smile back.

"Thank you."

He stared at her a bit more before adding:

"Daryl's a hot head, and stubborn as a mule. And I think he's not the only one."

She opened her eyes surprised but the man just chuckled and shook his head, leaving the stables.

* * *

Barbara wanted to talk to Daryl and at the same time she didn't, but she still looked for him. She found him near the house. His crossbow on a tree trunk on the floor. He was talking to Carol but the woman looked pretty upset. Carol walked away and Daryl was left alone holding his bleeding fist.

Barbara took a deep breath and called him.

"Daryl!"

The man turned surprised as the girl walked to him.

"Hey," he nodded his head but her eyes went directly to his hand.

"Are you okay? I mean..."

"It's not my blood," Daryl replied shrugging.

"Yeah, I know. I saw Randall. I patched him off after you left him like that," the girl replied a bit coldly, crossing her arms.

"What's with the tone?" Daryl asked frowning confused.

"You beat the life out of that kid," Barbara scolded him.

She looked at him in a way that just irked him.

"He's not a kid!" Daryl snapped at her, clenching his fists. "And I didn't kill him... but I... if you've heard..."

"Heard what?" Barbie frowned. "That kid hurt someone?"

Daryl was upset but he wasn't sure he wanted to tell her. He didn't want to scare her. But a glance to her fierce eyes confirmed him that she wouldn't let the matter go.

"He told me about..."

"Go on."

Daryl glanced at her and then looked away, frowning upset.

"He told me about some girls his group... raped. Made the father watch. This is what we're against."

Barbie didn't say anything for a moment processing what he had said.

"So you want to kill him?" She said incredulously.

He looked up to her.

"Do you want those people to come here and do the same?" He asked angrily. "We're up against 30 guys or so. And no matter how well you shoot, they're gonna kill us, and you and your sister and...They're gonna do things to you," Daryl's demeanor changed a bit and Barbie could notice. He wasn't just angry. He was scared. Barbie just watched him as he calmed a bit and stepped to her.

"I was just angry," Daryl explained shrugging. "I took it on him a little... I... I won't let them touch any of you."

The girl stared at him, feeling her arms tingling and her heart beating fast. She melted at the ferocious protectiveness in his eyes.

"What?" He asked gruffly. The girl shook her head and smiled lightly. She stepped to him and took his shaggy rag.

"Give me that. You have some blood on your chin."

She stepped closer and wiped the dried blood off his face gently.

"So you want to protect me?" The girl asked him taking his hand after she finished with his face and examined it. He had bruised his knuckles and had broken his skin.

"Don't flatter yourself. You're not the only woman in the group," Daryl snapped and Barbie looked up frowning. She noticed he was looking away and his ears were bright red. He hadn't meant it. He was just embarrassed. Barbie smiled pulling a bottle of water from her bag.

"Gee, thanks," she said sarcastically. Daryl turned to her and watched as the girl put some water on the rag and wiped his knuckles gently. Then she pulled out a bandage and covered his wounds.

"I do," Daryl finally said softly when she finished and the girl looked up confused. "I want to protect you. Don't want them to ever touch you." He clarified gruffly, his protectiveness showing up again.

The girl was just left speechless for a moment before grinning at him. Then she stood up on her tip toes and kissed his cheek gently.

"You're a good man, Daryl Dixon," the girl told him. "Don't let others turn you into something you're not."

"I had control despite what you think..." he defended himself, feeling his ears getting red again. "If I had let Shane do it, he would just have killed the kid."

The girl frowned looking at him.

"That's why you did it?" She asked.

Daryl just nodded. That was the main reason. He just couldn't admit that he had also wanted to be accepted in the group. He was alone in the world and even if he hadn't chose this group it was his now and he wanted to belong, and being honest it was not only for him. He wanted Barbie to know he was a guy who could protect her. Who the others could sometimes look up to, maybe.

"Hey hum... Dale approached me today..." She started saying.

Daryl grunted and nodded.

"You too?"

Barbie chuckled at his expression.

"Yes."

"And?"

"I don't think we should kill Randall," Barbie admitted, crossing her arms.

"Didn't you hear what I said earlier?" Daryl asked, frowning.

"I did. But he's only a kid."

Daryl huffed.

"He's not a kid."

Barbie rolled her eyes and sighed.

"Fine, he's a scrawny young guy that could be knocked easily by any of us and who can barely walk."

"Huh."

"Daryl, you know I'm right," the girl said seriously and Daryl looked at her. "He can't even stand on his feet. As long as we don't give him a gun or a knife I don't think we should worry."

"What about the thirty men?"

"Well... I don't think they're looking for him... but it really concerns me. I mean, they might have let him for dead, but they knew there were Rick and Brett and the others in there. They might start looking around the area..."

"I had thought of that too," Daryl said nodding.

"So?" Barbie asked raising her eyebrows.

"What?" Daryl frowned and the girl sighed.

"Would you stand with me and Dale?"

Daryl snorted.

"I don't care," he grunted.

"Daryl... please."

The man looked up and saw Barbara doing puppy eyes. Really? He snorted and kicked himself because he gave in.

"Fine."

But it was worthy because Barbie smiled brightly at him as she finished tying up his hand.

"There you go," she said happily.

Daryl flexed his hand, feeling the bandages tight but comfortable in his hand. She was good. Then he stared at his boots and cleared his throat, feeling his ears getting red.

"About the other day..."

"It's okay," Barbie interrupted him quickly. "Don't worry about it. I think it was either that or we ripped our heads off so..." she said chuckling but it sounded kind of forced. And that awkwardness and her dismissal angered him. He felt as she had just punched him in his guts.

"So it was nothing?" He grunted looking up.

Barbie seemed lost.

"I..."

"Figures," Daryl spat glaring at her. "Y'know, I'm tired of this. Tell me once what do you want. I hate this. I don't like to be played with."

Barbie stepped back opening her eyes, taken aback.

"No! How can you...?"

"Well, I don't know what the hell you want!" Daryl snapped getting angrier. She was hurting him so badly and the only way he knew how to fend it off was hurting back. "What is this? Why you care? You hug me and bring me food and shit, and tell me you broke up with him and you kissed me back! I'm not imagining things so what the hell you're doing?!"

"A mess," Barbie blurted and Daryl, glaring at her turned to leave.

"Wait, Daryl," the girl walked quickly, and stopped him by standing in front of him. "I... I don't know. After everything..." Barbie took a deep breath and looked him right in the eye. "I like you," she admitted. "And you're right I kissed you. I wanted it."

"So then why?" Daryl snapped almost desperately. What the hell was she doing? "Are you ashamed of me? Don't want the others know you're slumming it with the redneck?"

"No!" Barbie yelled, frowning a bit frustrated. "And you know I don't think that of you. Have I ever give you a reason for you to think I saw you as less than me or anyone else? No, I haven't! So no, I'm not ashamed of you!"

He looked at her with a mix of anger and confusion.

"Then..."

Barbara shook her head, sighting and looking at him apologetically.

"I'm so messed up right now," she told him softly. "I'm worried about Ellie, about Brett, about everyone here. I just don't think I can't do this. I lead on Blake long enough because I didn't want to hurt him and I just hurt him more than if I have ended things before."

"So that's what you're doing?" Daryl said, glaring at her. "Leading me on?"

Barbie shook her head again.

"I don't wanna lose you. I want you to be my friend..." She extended her hand and took his hand but he just snatched it away.

"Bullshit."

And he turned around and walked away.

"Daryl, please I just can't do this right now," Barbie yelled after him.

"Yeah? Me neither," he replied without looking at her and then left.

* * *

Later that day, as the sun went down, everyone went to the house to discuss Randall's issue.

"Let's gather up," Rick called after the group.

"Come on, Carl. I want you to stay with Ellie," Lori told her son, stopping him as he was going to the house.

"But I wanna be there," he protested.

"Not this time," Lori said softly, walking him to Elle. "Come on."

They all entered the house with a mix of emotions but the most present was plain awkwardness. They didn't want to deal with it. So they just sat or stood in around the living room with their arms crossed.

"So how do we do this?" Glenn finally asked. "Just take a vote?"

"Does it have to be unanimous?" Barbara asked Rick, because she knew their numbers were not on Dales favor.

"How about majority rules?" Lori suggested, looking around.

"Well," Rick said a bit overwhelmed by everything, especially with so many people listening to him. "Let's just see where everybody stands, then we can talk through the options."

"Well, where I sit, there's only one way to move forward," Shane said pretty forward, looking around as challenging someone to say something different.

"Killing him, right?" Dale intervened pretty upset. "I mean, why even bother to even take a vote? It's clear which way the wind's blowing."

"Well, if people believe we should spare him, I wanna know," Rick told him.

"Well, I can tell you it's a small group," Dale replied disappointed. "Maybe just me, Barbie and Glenn."

The man looked first at Glenn who couldn't look more uncomfortable. He crossed his arms and stared at his shoes, unable to face the old man.

"Look, I think you're pretty much right about everything, all the time," Glenn told Dale. "But this..."

"They've got you too?" Dale exclaimed upset and disappointed.

"He's not one of us," Glenn replied finally looking at Dale, apologetically. "And we've lost too many people already."

Dale saw the fear in Glenn's eyes and he knew he couldn't bring him back to his side. He sighed and turned to Barbara who was standing near the couch.

"How about you? Do you agree with this?" Dale asked her.

The girl crossed her arms, feeling everyone's eyes and looked at Rick.

"Couldn't we continue keeping him as a prisoner?" She suggested.

"Just another mouth to feed," Daryl snapped. He was standing on the other side of the room, with his arms crossed, leaning on the wall. When the girl glared at him, he returned it.

"It may be a lean winter," Hershel agreed.

"We could ration better," Lori suggested.

"Well, he could be an asset," Dale replied with hope. "Give him a chance to prove himself."

"Put him to work?" Glenn asked.

"We're not letting him walk around," Lori replied firmly.

"We could put an escort on him," Maggie shrugged.

"Who wants to volunteer for that duty?" Shane sneered.

"I will," Dale said, glaring at Shane but Rick intervened.

"I don't think any of us should be walking around with this guy," the sheriff replied, seriously.

"He's right," Lori added. "I wouldn't feel safe unless he was tied up." And the woman crossed her arms as if the mere thought scared her.

"We can't exactly put chains around his ankles, sentence him to hard labor," Andrea replied, frowning at the ridiculous suggestion.

"We don't need to tie him up, he will be barely able to walk with his leg hurt. He probably won't be able to stand for a lot period of time," Barbara said annoyed. Have no one heard her the first time?

"Look, say we let him join us, right?" Shane intervened looking around but his eyes stopped on Dale, Barbie and lastly on Rick. "Maybe he's helpful, maybe he's nice. We let our guard down and maybe he runs off, brings back his thirty men."

Barbara looked up, sensing Daryl's eyes. She thought she had seen fear for a brief second there but then she thought she had imagined it. Either way, she was still pissed off at him.

"So the answer is to kill him to prevent a crime that he may never even attempt?" Dale asked them, frustrated. "If we do this, we're saying there's no hope. Rule of law is dead. There is no hope."

"Oh, my God..." Shane said exasperated at Dale's antics, and threw his arms up.

"Could you drive him further out?" Hershel asked Rick, moved by Dale's words. "Leave him like you planned?"

"You barely came back this time," Lori quickly intervened, before her husband could speak. "There are walkers. You could break down. You could get lost."

"Or get ambushed," Daryl added.

"They're right," Glenn said. "We should not put our own people at risk."

"If you go through with it, how would you do it?" Patricia asked Rick. "Would he suffer?"

"We could hang him, right? Just snap his neck," Shane suggested and Rick turned to him.

"I thought about that. Shooting may be more humane," he replied.

"And what about the body?" T-Dog frowned. "Do we bury him?"

"Hold on, hold on!" Dale interrupted them upset. "You're talking about this like it's already decided."

"You've been talking all day, going around in circles. You just wanna go around in circles again?" Daryl snapped at him and Barbie glared at him, feeling more irritated by the second. Was he really playing at this? Just to get back at her?

"This is a young man's life, and it is worth more than a five-minute conversation!" Dale snapped angry now. "Is this what it's come to? We kill someone because we can't decide what else to do with him? You saved him and now look at us! He's been tortured! He's gonna be executed! How are we any better than those people that we're so afraid of?"

There was a silence where nobody could dare defy Dale's reasoning even f they didn't agree with him.

"We all know what needs to be done," Shane replied irritated.

"No, Dale is right. We can't leave any stone unturned here," Rick said looking at the old man. "We have a responsibility..."

"So what's the other solution?" Andrea interrupted him.

"Let Rick finish," Lori cut her and Andrea turned to her.

"We haven't come up with a single viable option yet," the blonde responded calmly. "I wish we could."

"So let's work on it!" Dale urged them.

"We are," Rick replied a bit exasperated himself.

"Stop it. Just stop it!" Carol interrupted, yelling upset. "I'm sick of everybody arguing and fighting. I didn't ask for this. You can't ask us to decide something like this. Please decide... Either of you, both of you, but leave me out."

And with that the woman left the house. Both Barbie and Daryl watched her leave and everyone made a pause then Dale talked again:

"Not speaking out or killing him yourself. There's no difference"

"All right, that's enough," Rick stopped them. "Anybody who wants the floor before we make a final decision has the chance."

Barbara looked at Dale's hopeless face and then at Elle outside the window with Carl. That guy was Barbie's age. He may not be a little kid, but she was sure he wasn't bad. He just had done what needed to be done. Like all of them.

"You once said that we don't kill the living," Dale told them. "Well, that was before the living tried to kill us. But don't you see? If we do this, the people that we were. The world that we knew is dead. And this new world is ugly. It's Harsh. It's survival of the fittest. And that's a world I don't wanna live in, and I don't... And I don't believe that any of you do. I can't. Please. Let's just do what's right."

And there was a pause when nobody said nothing. Dale sighed hurt and disappointed.

"Isn't there anybody else who's gonna stand with me?" He asked.

"He's right," Andrea intervened. "We should try to find another way."

"Anybody else?" Rick asked.

There was silence again before Barbara looked up and nodded.

"Yes. I do believe we shouldn't kill him," she said.

"You don't believe that," Shane buffed.

"I do," Barbara said firmly glaring at him and then at Daryl. "Let's be reasonable. That's a 50 something pound teen in there. You, Rick, Daryl, T-Dog, hell even I could knock him down with a punch. He can't walk. He can't even stand on his feet for long. We just have to keep an eye on him. I doubt he can open locks and as for being a threat, unless you're stupid enough to give him a gun I don't think we should worry."

Everyone seemed to make sense of her words but nobody else spoke up.

Shane sneered.

"And what are we going to do with him?" He asked. "There's not much food for us as it is. And what happens when he heals? When he can walk on his feet?"

"Well, Barbie, Andrea and Dale, that's three for keeping him alive," Rick said and looked around. "Somebody else?"

Barbara looked at Daryl who just glared at her and turned around, without saying a word. The girl felt her blood burning. Oh, that jerk...

"Are y'all gonna watch, too?" Dale said, his voice trembling with anger. "No, you'll go hide your heads in your tents and try to forget that we're slaughtering a human being," Dale took a deep shaken breath and shook his head. "Whoa I won't be a part to it."

Then he walked to Daryl and put a hand on his arm.

"This group is broken," he confirmed before leaving the house and the group.

* * *

That day at night, Rick, Shane and Daryl grabbed Randall and took him to the barn. Rick was ahead carrying a lamp and Daryl was pushing the kid so he wouldn't try to run.

As soon as Randall saw the barn, he got a bad feeling.

"Hold on. Hold on," he told them trying to stop but Daryl kept pushing him.

Rick opened the bar and the men entered pushing Randall in.

"Wait, wait."

"Put him there," Rick told Daryl pointing a place in the middle of the barn. Daryl put him in there and then Shane walked behind the kid, taking a blindfold out of his pocket.

"It's all gonna be over soon," he told Randall, putting the black rag covering his eyes.

"What? What's gonna be over soon?" Randall asked scared, starting to shake.

"Relax," Rick told him taking out his gun. Randall didn't see, but the noises freaked him out.

"No, no, no," he started to whimper.

"Shh, shh," Rick tried to calm him down, but he didn't feel that well himself. He pushed away the feeling though, and he just was left feeling a cold numbness.

He took of the safety of his gun and Randall just stood there in the middle of the barn, sobbing.

"Would you like to stand or kneel?" Rick asked him.

"Oh, no, please," Randall cried. But Daryl forced to his knees, and grabbing his hair he made it raise his head.

The kid started crying again.

"Do you have any final words?" Rick asked him but he just cried harder.

"No, please. Please don't. Don't," Randall sobbed harder and Rick raised his gun to the guy's head.

* * *

After the voting everyone was strangely bumped out despite almost everybody agreeing to. They ate in silent, feeling Dale's absence. The man had refused to eat, saying he would patrol the perimeter of the farm instead.

After dinner, Lori and Carol helped Patricia and Elle to clean up. Rick and Shane slipped out without trying to call attention to themselves but Carl noticed. He saw them going to get Randall.

Barbara didn't help this time with the dishes and went up to her room. She didn't eat almost anything to begin with. On the upstairs corridor she opened the curtains and looked outside, watching Rick, Daryl and Shane taking Randall to the barn, her stomach twisting in a painful knot. But then, she saw a shadow outside. Her heart stared racing thinking it was a walker. She looked closer and noticed it was too small and walked too straight. It was Carl following his dad. Dammit! That kid!

Barbara swore and thought about getting her gun first, but Carl was halfway there. She walked downstairs as quickly and swiftly as possible. The others were so distracted with their consciences so heavy, they didn't notice her.

The girl ran as fast as she could but the little boy had already reached the barn. Carl slipped in just as Rick took the safety off the gun and Randall sobbed harder.

"Do it, dad," Carl said, startling Rick who turned quickly to him. "Do it," said the little kid with zero remorse on his face. Just then, Barbara came behind Carl, she grabbed the boy's shoulder but the image of Rick holding up the gun to Randall's head as he cried, froze her in place.

Daryl looked up surprised at the girl who had just frozen in place. He could imagine the shock she was feeling. She had voted against it after all.

"Are you kidding me?" Shane said frustrated, walking to Carl. "What'd I say to you? What did I say to you?" Shane told him, upset, and before he could grabbed Carl's arm Barbie backed the kid away.

"I got him," she said, surrounding his shoulders with her arm.

"Come on, Carl," Barbie said as they turned around and left, but Carl turned his head to keep looking.

Rick tried to concentrate and shot Randall, but he still could felt Carl's eyes on him, still could hear Barbie's footsteps and couldn't see nothing but the girl's impression expression and the ruthlessness of his son. He knew. This was not right. It wasn't him.

"Take him away," Rick told Daryl, putting down the gun. "Take him away."

Both Barbie and Carl stopped and turned as well as Shane, who looked at Rick incredulously. Daryl watched Rick too, before walking to Randall, standing the guy up and dragging him outside.

Shane glared at Rick, and turned hitting angrily the barn's door in his way out, startling Barbara and Carl.

Rick put the safety on the gun and put it back on his belt turning to Carl.

"I can take him back," Barbara offered but Rick shook his head.

"No, it's fine. I'll do it," the man said. Knowing she needed to leave them alone, the girl turned around and quickly followed Daryl and Randall. The guy's cries and grunts could still be heard.

* * *

Barbara entered the barn just as Daryl was tying Randall up.

"How is he?" She asked him walking to Randall and watching his face.

"What are you doing here?" Daryl asked annoyed and upset.

"Are you okay?" The girl asked him placing two fingers on the boy's neck checking his pulse.

"I- I-I..." The boy shook, a rush of fear and relief making him panicking. The girl pulled down her hand and looked him in the eyes.

"Calm down. Breath or you'll have a panic attack. In for your nose, out for your mouth, come one." Once Randall was calmed she looked up to his hands and poked the ropes.

"You shouldn't tie him so tight," she told Daryl who was watching her angry and confused.

"We should try to avoid him escaping," Daryl snapped sarcastically.

Barbie glared at him and tapped Randall's kneecap with hers. They boy let out a yell and started wimping.

"He's not going anywhere tonight ropes or not..."

Then the girl faced Daryl crossing her arms, upset.

"Why did you do it? Why you agree to this?" She demanded.

He glared at her.

"I don't need this," he spat and tried to leave but the girl quickly put a hand on his arm.

"Daryl.. You're better than this..." The guy yanked his arm free of her hold without listening and the girl got mad. "Stop it! Stop it you hear me!" She snapped and he glowered at her. "You have no..."

But terrified screams interrupted. Both froze and turned to the other before springing to action. Daryl grabbed the lamp in the floor.

"Stay here!" He ordered the girl running outside.

"Hell no!" Barbie replied and ran after him. He glared at her but he had no time to scold her.

They reached the sources of the screams and to their horror was Dale, with a walker on top of him. Daryl threw the lamp to the ground and launched himself to the walker, knocking him off Dale. He quickly killed the walker as Barbie knelt next to Dale, putting down the lamp and examined the damage.

"Oh my God!" The girl said, red filling her vision.

"Help! Over here!" Daryl called the others, waving his arms, as they came closer. "Help! Run!"

Barbara took the light and placed it nearer Dale. It didn't change the situation however. It was just a gory mess of blood and guts.

"Hang in there, buddy," Daryl comforted Dale as the others reached them.

"Who is it?" Andrea asked but then she saw him and screamed. "Oh, my God. Oh, God."

Rick's eyes opened, covering his mouth with a hand, completely shocked.

"What can we do?" He asked to Barbara but the girl couldn't respond or move. If what she knew was right then... Barbara checked on his pulse. It wasn't good.

"Dale, it's gonna be okay," Glenn told him, trying to not panic himself. Dale's only response was by gurgling. He was choking on his own blood.

"Can we move him?" Rick asked Barbara but the girl shook her head.

"He won't make it," Barbara replied, her hands starting to shake.

"You have to do the operation here then," Rick stated urgently.

"What do you need?" Rick asked her. "Glenn, get back to the house!"

"I..." Barbara said but her voice was so low Rick didn't hear her. He kept yelling Glenn's instructions:

"Bring tools medical tools! Meds, everything! I have a knife!" Rick knelt again to her and pulled out his knife.

"I have this," Daryl offered his too.

But Barbara shook her head, finally finding her voice.

"We can't do nothing," the girl said. "It's too late."

"No, no," Rick said desperately and then he stood up. "Hershel..." he called the old man who had just arrived with Glenn and Maggie.

But Hershel shook his head at him.

"She's right, Rick. We can't..."

"No! No!" Rick yelled angrily, turning powerless.

Barbie shook her head.

"No, maybe-maybe we can," she said looking around Dale's wound. "I've operated before. Hold this up," she passed the light to Glenn who quickly hold it up. "We need to..."

"Barbie, the stomach is punctured," Hershel told her. "There's bile and blood everywhere..." Hershel shook his head and the girl started crying. He was right. And even if there was a chance to save him, they hadn't the tools or time.

"I'm sorry, Dale... I'm so sorry," the girl sobbed.

Daryl stepped up and grabbed her arm softly.

"Come on," he said pulling her and he helped her up. He surrounded her shoulders with his arm and took her aside, rubbing her arms soothingly.

Dale was grunting and moaning, chocking.

"He's suffering. Do something!" Andrea cried.

Rick pulled out his gun and pointed at Dale. But he just couldn't shoot. He couldn't shoot Dale of all people.

Daryl then extended his hand and wordlessly took his gun out of his hand. He slowly knelt next to Dale. His ears rang with Andrea and Barbie's cries and Dale's noises. But it was for him. For Dale. He didn't deserve to suffer and Daryl would stop that.

"I'm sorry brother," he told him softly, and he meant every word. Then he shot.

* * *

"Daryl?"

The man just looked up at her and then looked down at his hands. The girl stood there, wondering if she should leave. She was about to turn around when Daryl suddenly rose and walked to her. He pulled her tightly to him and buried his face on her neck. Barbie closed her eyes, and hugged him back.

He didn't cry nor did her. And no one said a word. They just held each other because they both felt like failures. Barbara because she couldn't save Dale. She had frozen. In the moment that mattered the most, she had frozen. Maybe if she had tried harder she could have remembered a similar procedure, a successful one. And Daryl, because she had shot him. He hadn't regretted it. Dale had been suffering and Daryl was sure that if the old man could have been able to speak he would have asked for someone to end it. However, no matter how long it would take, it could be tomorrow or in one hundred years, Daryl would have Dale's face burnt in his memory until his last moments.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

The Turning Point

...

It was a new day, but the light didn't bring them peace. The sun just shone under the ugly pieces the night had left. All of the group had been marked one way or another.

They woke up pretty early. Some of them didn't sleep at all. As soon as there was light Daryl and Rick made a grave. Then, the rest of the group came in.

"Dale could get under your skin. He sure got under mine... Because he wasn't afraid to say exactly what he thought, how he felt..." Rick's sincerity hit them all, as the man spoke next to Dale's grave. His voice was charged with regret, sadness but also resolution.

Dale had been buried earlier that day next to Sophia, William and Shawn.

"That kind of honesty is rare and brave," Rick admitted nodding. Barbie couldn't help but looked up at him, remembering Dale's word to her.

"Whenever I'd make a decision, I'd look at Dale. He'd be looking back at me with that look he had. We've all seen it one time or another. I couldn't always read him, but he could read us. He saw people for who they were. He knew things about us... The truth, Who we really are."

Barbara could help but turned and looked at Daryl on his side, several feet away from them and everybody else. He was looking back at her.

"In the end, he was talking about losing our humanity. He said this group was broken. The best way to honor him is to unbreak it. Set aside our differences and pull together, stop feeling sorry for ourselves."

Barbara felt another person looking at her and when she turned she met Blake's eyes. His face was blank, but there was a sadness and acceptance in his eyes.

"And take control of our lives, our safety, our future."

Then she looked at Brett and Ellie. The blonde was hugging her brother and crying silently.

"We're not broken," Rick assured them. "We're gonna prove him wrong. From now on We're gonna do it his way. That is how we honor Dale."

Barbara couldn't save Dale, nor her mom nor her dad. But she wouldn't fail again. She would protect her family with her life. They wouldn't be ripped off her life again. Never again. And it was time to listen Dale. Barbie had been running since the world had ended, running from pain, running from happiness, whatever was left of it. She may have not wasted time, but she had wasted opportunities. She was going to fight for what she wanted from now on.

Barbie looked up to Daryl but he wasn't looking at her anymore. He was walking away.

* * *

After the funeral, Shane, T-Dog, Daryl and Andrea left on a truck to repair the fallen fence and killed the walkers that had walked into the farm. The rest of the group, started packing the camp.

"It'll be tight, sixteen people in a house," Rick told Hershel, Maggie and Barbie. They were helping the group to take down the camp, and move their things to the house.

Barbie shrugged.

"It's a big house."

Hershel nodded.

"Besides, with the swamp hardening, the creek drying up..."

"And fifty head of cow in the property, we may as well ring out a damn dinner bell," Maggie said.

"She's right," Hershel agreed. "We should've moved you in a while ago," the man admitted, apologetically, glancing at Barbie.

Rick nodded, smiling gratefully.

"All right, let's move the vehicles near each of the doors, facing out toward the road," he told the group as everyone was putting things on backpacks or move bags.

"We'll build a lookout in the windmill, another in the barn loft. That should give us sight lines both sides of the property," he told Shane and Daryl. "T-Dog," Rick called the man who was carrying a bag. "You take the perimeter around the house. Keep track of everyone coming and go."

"What about standing guard?" T-Dog asked.

"I need you and Daryl on double duty. Brett will help you," Rick told him. Daryl turned to him nodded and then walked away.

"Gotcha," T-Dog replied, looking at Brett who nodded at Rick and then at him.

"I'll stock the basement with food and water, enough that we can all survive there a few days if need be," Hershel informed Rick, while walking to and giving her a cooler. The girl was standing , behind Rick, on the bed of the truck putting everything on a pile.

"We should also started to track and ration the food we have," Barbie suggested grabbing a box Lori handled her. "Make sure we don't run low..." But Daryl handled her another box and the girl lost her train of thought. He didn't look at her. And as soon as she was holding the box he walked away quickly. Barbie sighed and put down the box a little bit rougher than needed.

"What about patrols?" Andrea asked Rick.

"Let's get this area locked down first," he told her and then turned to Shane. "After that, Shane'll assign shifts while me and Daryl take Randall offsite and cut him loose."

"We're back to that now?" Shane asked a bit exasperated, aware that Barbie, Lori and Hershel were standing behind him all paying attention to the exchange.

"It was the right plan first time around. Poor execution," Rick replied.

"That's a slight understatement," Shane said sarcastically.

"You don't agree, but this what's happening," Rick assured him firmly. "Swallow it. Move on."

"You know that Dale's death and the prisoner, that's two separate things, right?" Shane asked Rick on almost a whisper, his voice full of something Barbie didn't like. She pretended to be busy by placing the gas tank Lori passed her safely down but she could sense the tension between both men.

"You wanna take Daryl as your wingman, be my guest," Shane added, bitterly.

"Thank you," Rick said annoyed, walking away.

"You got it," Shane replied loud enough for Rick to hear.

Hershel gave a look at Barbie and the girl nodded lightly. He helped her down the truck and both walked away.

Andrea finished loading up the truck and then hit it so Blake would started it up. She and the rest carried things by foot, except for Daryl who also brought his motorcycle close to the house.

Barbie saw him passing around and couldn't help to smile lightly. And when she turned she saw Elle, looking at her and with a big fat grin.

"Hey, I want you to put in your backpack a couple of cans, clothes, and your personals," Barbara told her sister on a whisper. "Have it ready, day and night, where you can get it easily."

Elle's smile disappeared quickly and she frowned.

"What for?" She asked, a bit worried.

"The farm is not safe anymore. We need to be prepared for the worst," Barbie replied and looked at her sister who had a startled expression. "If we need to run, I wanna make sure we have everything we need."

Despite a sinking feeling in her stomach, Elle nodded at her sister. That was a smart move, and she appreciated Barbie still worrying about her.

After a while, however, her smile returned.

"What is going on with you and Daryl?" Elle asked, always curious about somebody else' relationships.

Barbara turned to her again, and shook her head.

"Nothing."

Elle raised her eyebrows not believing her and Barbie sighed.

"It's my fault," the brunette admitted. "I pushed him away too many times."

"Are you gonna fix it?" Ellie asked her, stopped smiling. She wasn't going to mock her sister.

"If he lets me," Barbie replied honestly.

The smile Elle gave her wasn't sarcastic anymore.

"It was about time."

* * *

After he parked his motorcycle in front of the porch, Daryl went up to the roof the shack and started fixing it some holes it had on it. He knew Barbie and Hershel said Randall couldn't move with his busted leg, and the guy was handcuffed and gagged but he didn't want any surprises.

Barbara returned from the house and approached the barn. She raised a hand to cover her eyes from the sun and called him:

"Daryl?"

The man stiffened when he heard her voice but she didn't notice because he was up in the roof. He didn't turn to her and try to keep working with the same rhythm.

"Hum..."

Barbie sighed at his grunt but she didn't expect anything else. She had been an idiot.

"Do you need any help?" She asked.

"I'm good," Daryl grunted, forcing himself to not turn to her.

"Some water maybe?" The girl asked him, her voice clearly disappointed. He didn't bulge though.

"Nah. Thanks."

Barbie sighed again.

"Okay."

And she left him alone. She knew he didn't want to talk to her so she would him space. At least while he was working on the roof. She go back to the house where the group was putting their things inside the house.

She turned to Daryl's motorbike, parked outside with a duffel bag on top of it.

"Rick and Carl and I are taking the corner of the living room," Lori told T-Dog who insisted she shouldn't carry heavy weights, and grabbed the container she had.

"You can put that in my room," Hershel told T-Dog as he opened the front door for him. "You'll be more comfortable there."

But Lori shook her head.

"We can't do that," she told Hershel.

"A pregnant woman and child sleeping on the floor, while I've got a bed to myself?" Hershel said a big indignantly and shook his head.

"This is still your house," Lori reminded him.

"It's our home," Hershel replied with a smile. "I'll take the couch downstairs. On nights when I came home reeking of bourbon, my wife would lock the bedroom door. I'm sad to say that couch and I become old friends," the old man joked.

"Look, if you two can't decide, I'll take it," T-Dog intervened matter-of-factly, walking to them and taking the box out of the truck bed.

Lori smiled and then turned to Hershel.

"Thank you."

"The couch is mine," Hershel yelled after T-Dog who was entering the house.

"It's gonna get real cozy real fast in here," T-Dog replied sarcastically.

Barbie couldn't help but laugh at the interaction and shook her head, walking to Hershel and Lori.

"Actually Brett and Blake offered their room for Lori and Carl," she told both of them. "They're bunking down with the rest of the guys so you can keep your room Hershel."

"Well in that case, I think I may trade the couch rights for some favors," the old man said slyly winking at her.

They chuckled while Hershel walked back into the house.

Lori turned to Barbie and noticed the things she was carrying.

"Is that Daryl's?" She asked, with a rose eyebrow.

Barbara nodded, trying to suppress the heat in her cheeks that was growing, and look nonchalant.

"I'm just putting them inside," she shrugged and couldn't help but glance at the barn where Daryl was working on the roof.

Lori turned to Daryl working on the barn and then to Barbie who was blushing. Lori smiled lightly.

"Give him time. He can be stubborn," she assured the girl.

Barbara nodded and smiled joylessly.

"I know. The problem is that I was even more."

* * *

Later that day, Rick approached Daryl. They needed to make plans about how to move Randall out of the farm.

"We'll take him out to Senoia -hour there, hour back-, give or take," Rick told Daryl as both man leaned over a map. "We may lose the light, but we'll be halfway home by then."

"This little pain in the ass will be a distant memory," Daryl said, agreeing, and sat on the porch railing. "Good riddance."

"Carol's putting together some provisions for him, enough to last a few days," Rick told him as he folded the heard a car and when they turned saw Shane driving one of the cars back to the house.

"That thing you did last night..." Rick started, turning to him.

"Ain't no reason you should do all the heavy lifting," Daryl interrupted him and Rick nodded, appreciating it.

"So are you good with all this?" Rick asked him as Shane parked a couple of yards away from of them.

"I don't see you and I trading haymakers on the side of the road," Daryl said matter-of-factly, shrugging. "Nobody'd win that fight."

He heard footsteps and when he saw Shane he decided to leave, not wanting to be in the middle of whatever was happening betwen him and Rick.

"I'm gonna take a piss," Daryl said, and before Rick could say anything else. he walked away.

Daryl walked to his motorcycle to grab his stuff, but he noticed the bag was gone.

"...the Hell?" The man frowned looking around but it wasn't in the porch either.

The front door opened and he saw T Dog exiting the house.

"Hey, man, have you seen my stuff?" Daryl asked him looking around.

"Yeah, it's in the house," T Dog explained pointing at the building behind him.

"What?" Daryl looked at him confused.

T Dog shrugged and gave him a smirk.

"Barbie put it in there."

* * *

It was around four or five, nobody knew exactly. Blake and Ellie were nailing planks to the windows of the farm house while Brett and Barbie brushed the perimeter. Rick and Hershel had been adamant to let the girl go, but she insisted, she knew it better than any of them.

"Just one last round," Brett told Barbie. "Are you sure you're going to be fine with that?" Brett nodded at the crossbow in her hands. He knew Barbie could take care of herself, and it was actually a big relief, but she had just learned to use the crossbow and he didn't want her to take any chances but Barbie nodded.

"I have my knife and my gun, just in case," she told Brett. "But I can manage with this fine," she raised the crossbow and her brother nodded.

"Alright, then. One last round, I'll meet you at the house."

Barbie nodded.

"I'll check the stables one last time," she said as Brett walked away.

Barbara walked the perimeter again, not bumping into any nasty surprise. Then she went to the stables and made sure the horses had water and food and that the door was locked after her. Her stomach churned at the thought of waking up and find the horses devoured by those things. She locked them up and was going to go back but saw something between the trees.

Barbie frowned and followed the shadow swiftly, trying to make the least noise possible, her crossbow raised. She surrounded some trees and as she got closer she realized it wasn't a walker but Shane. The man looked very agitated and was passing around.

"Shane? Are you okay?" The girl put her crossbow down as the man turned around surprised.

"I'm fine..."

He said nodding his head, but then girl noticed the circles under his eyes and his hands shaking. Barbie frowned and put the crossbow in her back.

"You don't look fine," the girl said walking up to him. "Do you want me to check you up?"

"Nah."

She raised a hand but Shane shook his head, taking her wrist in his. Barbara didn't expect that, and when he looked at her, she felt a shiver running down her spine. She had the urge to run away, suddenly.

"Why do you voted in favor of Randall, huh?" He suddenly demanded, getting closer to her. "Why? That was stupid and I know you ain't. You carried a gun. You were prepared. And this is stupid. It's going to get us killed!"

"I did think it over!" Barbie snapped, getting angry at him. "We don't need to kill him."

"He's a threat!"

"He can barely move!" Barbara snapped exasperated. "He won't make it back into the county at least in days!"

"Yeah? An what if he brings reinforces huh?! What if they came at night?"

Shane let go of her hand, and grabbed her arm, forcefully pulling her to him.

"Let me go," Barbara said coolly, glaring up at him. "Let me go now!"

Something snapped in Shane and he leashed it on the girl. He pushed her to a tree, her head hitting it hardly, her crossbow hurting her back.

Barbie gasped, her breath and a scream, getting stuck in her throat and she was paralyzed with fear.

"Dale is dead!" Shane snapped at her, punching the tree barely inches away from her face. "This won't change that! And we are going to end like that if we don't do anything!I'm not the bad guy! I'm just trying to keep you alive! Don't you know that? Don't you fucking now that?!"

Barbara reacted despite her fear and she kicked Shane on the groin. The man groaned and doubled by the waist and the girl pushed him away. She tried to run away but he stopped her by pulling at her arm and knocking her to the ground, falling on her front. He limped to her, still hurting, but when he grabbed her shoulder she turned around hitting him with her elbow in his chest. It wasn't strong enough to stop him from breathing but the girl scrambled to her feet and ran away before he could stop her.

Shane watched her go and kicked a tree angry at his lack of restrain. He had screwed so bad this time.

"Shit..."

* * *

Daryl was packing the truck with water and supplies when movement caught his eyes. He saw something coming out of the woods and he thought for a moment it was a walker. But it was too fast, he noticed. Then his stomach sank when he recognized Barbie. She was dirty, her hair was falling off her ponytail and there was blood on her cheek and knees. And she was running while crying. No, no, no...

"Barbara!" he yelled after her, and ran to meet her.

The girl stopped dead and her eyes opened wide.

"Daryl," the girl said, taken aback, and cursed herself because she had picked such a direct route to the house. She tried to think up of an excuse but Daryl's attentive eyes had taken notice of everything.

"What the hell happened?" He demanded worriedly. "Are you bitten?"

Barbie shook her head, wiping her tears. He had seen them already so there was no point pretending she hadn't cried.

"I'm fine."

"The hell you are," Daryl replied angrily. "What happened?" Daryl reached out and tried to hold her but Barbie reacted instinctively and stepped back.

"Sorry," Barbie blabbed quickly, but Daryl had noticed something she wouldn't be able to recognize. He knew that fear that made you shrink at the touch of others. That expression expecting to be hurt. Barbie hadn't been attacked by a walker, she had been attacked by someone alive and kicking.

"Who did this?" Daryl asked her softly, taking her by surprise. She frowned, watching him confused. How did he knew? "Barbie, please, tell me. Who did this?"

Daryl tried again and reached for her hand. This time she didn't step back and sighed looking down. She was about to tell him, Shane's name almost rolling of her tongue but then she remember he was about to leave with Rick for a day maybe more. If she told him Shane had attacked her, Daryl would go and try to kill him and would cause more chaos. No, it was better if she didn't say anything for now. At least, until he and Rick were both back and safe.

Barbie shook her head.

"I just fell," she shrugged.

"Barbie..." Daryl didn't believe her for a second.

"Later, Daryl, okay?" She asked him, squeezing his hand in hers. "I promise I'll tell you everything."

"If someone attacked you..."

"Only got so many arrows," T-Dog interrupted putting a gun almost in Daryl's face. Barbara took the opportunity to step back from Daryl and take a deep breath, crossing her arms, trying to look compose.

"Is that Dale's gun?" Daryl asked him taking it.

"Yeah," T-Dog nodded and gave him a look.

"Wish I knew where the hell mine is," Daryl said shaking his head.

T-Dog turned to Barbie, ready to tease them a bit but he noticed her messy state.

"Damn, girl! What happened to you?" The man asked, frowning worriedly.

"I stepped on a very well hidden burrow and rolled down a couple of feet,"said Barbie quickly, forcing an embarrassed smile. "It was something stupid. I'm all bruised and scratched down," she said pointing at her knees with a grimace.

"Ouch, you gotta be careful," T-Dog told her with an empathetic grimace. "Can't be falling around like that with walkers around.

"I know, it was dumb. Please don't tell my brother," she asked him with big puppy eyes. "I don't want him to think I can't look after myself."

T-Dog waved his hand.

"He won't hear it from me. I promised."

"Thank you," Barbie said with a sweet smile.

T-Dog went around the truck to check everything was fine. Barbie tried to walk away but Daryl's hand closed around her wrist softly. She jumped a bit and he let her go frowning. She was just still jumpy.

"Are you going to be okay?" He asked her in a low voice, his eyes still looking worried.

Barbie nodded.

"I just need a shower," she said trying to smile. "Are you guys ready to leave?"

"Yeah," he said.

"Be careful. Okay? Be safe," and Barbie reached out and took his hand, squeezing it lightly. Daryl looked up at her with a questioning look and she smiled stepping closer. She opened her mouth just when Rick approached them, asking loudly: "Ready?"

Both turned around, and Barbie sighed exasperated. Was she going to bump onto everybody in the farm?

Of course Rick stopped as well and looked at her with worry.

"Barbie, what happened to you?"

"I fell," she replied, her face reddening. And she gave him the same lie than T-Dog.

"Gotta be careful out there," Rick told her and she nodded. But he promised not to tell Brett. Barbie, saying goodbye to both men, walked back to the house limping a little.

"She's good," Rick told Daryl as T-Dog went to fetch Randall. "A fall explains her scratched knees and bruises. That rock detail she added explains the face cut... but I don't think she had noticed the finger-shaped bruises on her arms," Rick finished upset with a grim expression.

Daryl nodded and grunted. He had seen them too.

"Did she tell you who attacked her?" Rick asked Daryl, but he shook his head.

"It wasn't a walker," said Daryl, frowning as well, his eyes following Barbie's silhouette. "I think someone in the group attacked her and she's protecting the son of a bitch."

Rick nodded.

"Maybe is close to her... Do you think Blake...?"

But they were interrupted by T-Dog shouting:

"Oh hell no!"

* * *

Rick and Andrea were looking around the shack and Daryl and T-Dog outside, looking for clues of how Randall had escape the shack. The whole group went there, except for Barbie who was in her bathroom cleaning up her wounds and putting ointment on her bruises.

"What's wrong?" Hershel asked.

"Randall's missing," T-Dog informed them, upset

"Missing?" Patricia covered her mouth with her hand.

"How long's he been gone?"

"What's going on?"

With all of them running around worried, nobody noticed Shane, all bloodied up, watching them.

"It's hard to say. The cuffs are still hooked. He must have slipped them," Rick told Hershel and Carol walking out of the shack and looked at the roof.

"Is that possible?" Carol asked.

"It is if you've got nothing to loose," Andrea replied walking out of the shack as well.

"The door was secured from the outside," Brett said, shaking his head. "And the holes repaired."

Shane cursed and quickly hid his gun between the leaves, before coming out of his hide out shouting to the top of his lungs:

"Rick! Rick!"

It worked. Everyone stopped and looked at him.

"What happened?" Lori asked him as he approached quickly.

"He's armed!" Shane told them. "He's got my gun!"

"Are you okay?" Ellie asked him startled, when he stopped next to her. There was blood all over his face and even some wood stuck to it.

"I'm fine," Shane told her and turned to Rick. "Little bastard just snuck up on me. He clocked me in the face."

Rick turned around quickly.

"All right, Brett, T-Dog, get everybody back in the house," Rick told them. "Brett stay on perimeter watch around the house. T-Dog, you inside. Glenn, Daryl, come with us."

"T, I'm gonna need that gun," Shane told him walking to him. T-Dog handled him his gun.

"Just let him go," Carol said quickly. "That was the plan, wasn't it, to just let him go?"

"The plan was to cut him loose far away from here, not on our front step with a gun," Rick replied seriously.

"Don't go out there," Carol insisted, as Glenn and Daryl followed Rick and Shane. "You don't know what can happen."

"Get everybody back in the house," Rick yelled as the walked away. "Lock all the doors and stay put!"

"Let's go, back in the house," said Andrea urging Carol and Ellie back to the house.

* * *

"I saw him head up through the trees that way before I blacked out," Shane told Rick, Daryl and Glenn as they headed into the woods. "I'm not sure how long."

"He couldn't have gotten far," Rick said. "He's hobbled, he's exhausted..."

"And armed," Glenn added.

"So are we," Rick stopped and turned to Daryl.

"Can you track him?" He asked him.

"No, I don't see nothing," Daryl said, shaking his head and looking around the ground.

"Hey, look, there ain't no use in tracking him, okay?" Shane told them as the other three looked around. "He went that way. We need to pair up. We spread out, we just chase him down. That's it."

Something about Shane was off today, Daryl noticed and he remembered something Barbie had been repeating since Randall came in.

"Kid weighs about 25 soaking wet," said Daryl, turning to Shane. "You trying to tell us he got the jump on you?"

"I say a rock pretty much evens those odds, wouldn't you?" Shane replied coldly.

"Alright, knock it off," Rick intervened. "You and Glenn start heading up the right flank," he told Daryl. "Me and Shane'll take the left. Remember, Randall's not the only threat out there. Keep an eye out for each other."

* * *

Barbie took a quick shower and then patched her knees up. This time she put on some jeans to hide the bandages and she kicked herself. She should've put on some jeans in the morning instead of her shorts. Maybe she wouldn't have hurt her knees so badly. She put on a light shirt that had sleeves reaching her elbows. She had seen the marks while showering and realized how Daryl knew someone had attacked her.

Then she picked up her hair in a ponytail and put a small gauze on her face. She had a cut by her jaw line. She then went downstairs and frowned confused when she saw the rest of the group coming in a hurry, all looking startled and worried.

"What happened?" She asked Patricia.

"Randall escaped," the woman explained quickly. "Randall and the other's went looking for him."

"The others?"

"What happened to you?" Hershel intervened quickly, frowning at the gauze on her face.

"Nothing. I fall. Stepped into a burrow," the girl replied quickly.

"You should be more careful," Hershel started to scold her. "One of those things could have gotten to you while you where down."

"Okay, there was no walkers around and I just scrapped my knees," Barbie cut him, exasperated. "And if a walker had been around, I'd taken care of it, just like I've done before."

Barbara walked to her sister, not wanting to be scolded further and brought her upstairs with her. She needed her to patch her back. She had small cuts made by her crossbow that she couldn't reach. And she also needed Ellie to tell her, what the hell had happened while she was washing.

"So Shane was the last one to see Randall?" Barbie asked Ellie as the blonde put a gauze on her sister's back.

"Yes. Randall attacked him. Left him all hurt," Ellie replied, cutting another gauze. Barbie shook her head and rolled her eyes. "I just hope they'll find him before it's too dark."

"He's limping. Daryl would find his trace easily," Barbara replied confidently.

"Well, he better be careful. He really messed Shane up," the blonde said, starting to rub some Voltaren on Barbie's back.

"It's a bit weird, isn't it?" Barbie said, thinking about what her sister had just told her.

"What?"

"A kid, not stronger than me or me, knocking someone like Shane out," Barbara said raising an eyebrow.

"Well he hit Shane with something," Ellie said, rubbing some more cream on her arms and shoulder which had turned purple at this point. "With a branch probably."

"How do you know?" Barbie asked her confused as she put on her shirt, careful to not mess up the gauze.

"He had pieces of bark on his face," Ellie said, scrunching up her nose. "On the blood."

Barbie looked at her sister, frowning.

"Bark? But how could he...?"

And then something down on her.

"The shack was locked from the outside and you said the lock wasn't picked," Barbie said, her eyes unfocused.

"Yes, and the handcuffs weren't broken either," Ellie nodded.

Barbie quickly put on her boots and her belt with her knife on. Then she grabbed her gun, and placed it on the back of her jeans.

"Gotta go."

"What?" Ellie frowned, standing as well. "No! You can't go out with that crazy guy out there!"

"Listen to me, Elle, Randall it's the last of our problems if what I think it's right," Barbara told her sister, grabbing her crossbow as well.

"But..."

"I'll be fine," Barbie assured her. "I'll go get Daryl. But you can't tell Brett or nobody else. Promise me."

"Barbie..."

"Promise me," the brunette urged her.

Ellie's face felt and she nodded.

"Fine. But if you don't return within the hour..."

"Alright, you can tell Brett," Barbie nodded. "Thanks."

Barbara went to her window and opened it. There was a small roof under it.

"Barbie. Be careful out there," Ellie told her as her sister slipped out of the window.

Barbara nodded and then slipped down.

* * *

Daryl and Glenn where advancing through the woods steady and silently looking around and turning at any little noise. They had been like that for a while but Daryl didn't see a thing and the noises around where the typical noises of a forest nothing out of the norm.

"This is pointless," Daryl grunted stopping and turning to Glenn. "You got a light?"

Glenn gave him his lantern and Daryl turned it on placing it high, so he could see the forest ground.

"Come on."

And both men kept going.

"We're just back to square one," Glenn mumbled when he saw a fallen tree. A tree where they had split with Rick and Shane before it went dark.

"If you're gonna do a thing, you might as well do it right," Daryl replied looking around. "There's two sets of tracks right here. Shane must've followed him a lot longer than he said."

"Daryl," Glenn started to say but stopped when they heard noises. This time it wasn't a bird or a rabbit. It was something bigger, heavier. They were footsteps. Daryl looked at Glenn who looked alarmed. Daryl put a finger on his mouth and both men raised their weapons walking silently behind a tree. Whoever it was, it was getting closer.

Daryl took a deep breath and then threw himself out of the tree, lifting his crossbow ready to shoot... and met with Barbara's shock face. The girl yelped and stepped back raising her arms and Daryl put down his crossbow, angrily.

"Jesus, woman! What's wrong with you?!" He yelled at her. "I almost shoot you!"

Glenn came out of his tree looking at Barbie confused.

"I couldn't precisely shout and wave my arms at you, could I?!" She snapped back, glaring at him because of his tone.

"You shouldn't be here...!"

"Huh, guys could you speak lower...?" Glenn interrupted them. "We are, you know, in the woods at night..."

Daryl glared at him and then crossed the space until he was in front of the girl.

"What the hell are you doing here?" He scolded her in a lower voice. "It's dark. It's dangerous. Do you have a death wish or something?!"

"Randall didn't escape," Barbie told him, looking up at him, without being intimidated.

"What?" Daryl frowned, looking at her.

"Then what..."

"Shane let him escape," Barbie said looking at Daryl and then at Glenn.

Glen buffed and shook his head.

"That's ridiculous..."

"No, it's not," but it was Daryl who answer, not Barbie. Glenn looked confused at Daryl and then at Barbie.

"Why would Shane let Randall escape?" He asked a bit exasperated.

"First of all, Randall couldn't have knock him out," Barbie started explaining. "He's hurt. He can't walk and after been locked in the barn he was weak. I checked up on him earlier that day. Shane should have heard him coming."

Glenn opened his mouth to reply but Barbie raised a hand.

"Second, Ellie noticed some bark on Shane's mouth and nose wound."

"So...?" Glenn shrugged.

"So... if Randall knocked him out it should have been with a branch," Barbie said.

"Right," Glenn shrugged, not knowing where this was going.

"But how Randall got that branch so fast?" Barbie asked. "It couldn't be lying around, because then it wouldn't be long enough. He should have to cut a big large branch so he could even hurt Shane a little."

"Well maybe he found a big one lying around," Glenn said.

"No, Shane said it was a rock," Daryl intervened, cutting their argument.

"He said that?" Barbie repeated and Daryl nodded.

"Maybe the rock had some bark pasted on it," Glenn suggested. Daryl and Barbie raised their eyebrows and he shrugged. "It was just an idea. It's better than to think that Shane let Randall go. Why would he do that?"

Barbie looked at him before answering.

"I think that Shane let out Randall before T-Dog could get him. He took him to the woods and probably kill him."

Glenn opened his eyes a bit horrified.

"But that's..."

"I know, but think about it," Barbie urged him. "If someone has motives to do it, that's him. He wanted Randall dead since the beginning. And we know he's not the following-rules-kind of guy... I think he had enough and decided to act on his own."

"But are you sure? I mean..."

"I couldn't say it before..." Barbie interrupted him and glanced at Daryl. "I was scared... I thought he was just upset... Not that I'm defending him, but now..."

"What?" Daryl asked.

"Shane attacked me," Barbie replied, crossing her arms.

"What?!" Glenn looked mortified, Daryl looked angry. Angrier that she had ever seen him.

"In the woods," Barbie admitted. "I was coming from the stables and saw him. He looked mad so I followed him... He..." The girl made a pause, swallowing and Daryl closed his hands in fists, wanting to punch something badly.

"Did he touch you?"

Daryl's question and anger took both Glenn and Barbara by surprise. He hadn't forgotten that time he bumped into him and Lori in the CDC bunker. How scared she had looked... If that son of bitch had touched Barbara...

"No," the girl replied immediately, shaking her head and he felt a bit better.

"I managed to kick him and ran. He tried to stop me and I felt, hence the scratches."

"Why didn't you say something before? I would have bashed his brains out myself," Daryl snapped but she knew he wasn't angry at her.

"I- I was scared. And you were going out with Rick. I wanted you to take Randall away. Didn't want to cause a big fight yet," Daryl open his mouth to reply but Barbie said first: "He's not in his right mind, if he ever was. I have a bad feeling... He killed Otis. He probably killed Randall..."

"He killed Otis?" Glenn asked alarmed looking at Barbie and Daryl. The man nodded but kept staring at Barbara.

"You should have told me."

"I wanted to do it. But I also wanted you to come back safe."

Barbie shook her head.

"That's not important now. Let's find out what really happened."

"There's some tracks here," Daryl said nodding. "Be ready for what we might find."

Then he turned to Barbara.

"You go behind me and in front of Glenn. Don't do anything stupid."

Barbie frowned as he turned around and kept walking.

"Right back at ya, Dixon," she replied cheekily.

They kept walking in the dark, following the tracks Daryl had found.

"There's fresh blood on this tree," Daryl told them, shinning on a spot of blood. Barbie quickly went to see it and noticed it was higher on a tree.

"The mark it's high, like a feet taller than my head," Barbie said, glancing at Daryl and Glenn "Shane size maybe? That would explain the bark."

"There's more tracks, Sherlock," Daryl said looking at the ground. "Looks like they're walking in tandem."

He started following them and Glenn followed him. But Barbie stayed back a little watching around the tree.

"Yeah, there was a little dust up right here," Daryl observed shinning on the ground.

"What do you mean?" Barbie asked catching up with them.

"I mean something went down."

"It's getting messy," Daryl observed as they went. "Had a little trouble," then they stopped and noticed a black rag on the floor. Glenn picked it and held it high. It was long and stretch.

A stumble behind them startled them. Daryl grabbed Barbara's arm and pushed her ahead of him behind a thick tree. Glenn hid behind another next to them.

He turned to them scared. Daryl, whistling first, threw him the buck knife so he could be armed. Glenn caught it midair and peeked looking for the walker, stumbling behind them.

Daryl was watching it too, and Barbara leaned on him, raising the crossbow, but he shook his head and pressed her to the tree, his firm hold on her arm reassuring them both.

As they heard the walker getting closer and Glenn's breathing got heavier, Daryl let go of Barbara's arm and readied his crossbow.

Glenn then peeked out his tree and the walker's identity shocked him. And he threw himself at Glenn before he could killed it.

Daryl came out of the tree pointing at the walker but he pushed Glenn to the ground and Daryl missed him.

Barbara gasped and the walker turned to them.

The walker threw himself at Daryl who was out of arrows, and pushed Barbara out of the way. The girl tripped and felt to the ground.

Glenn was groping around looking fro the buck knife.

Daryl barely held the walker away in time, but the weight of this pushed Daryl to the ground, and the man struggling, barely keep the walker at bay.

"No!" Barbara yelled, jumping to her feet and pulling out her knife.

Just as the jaws of the walker approached Daryl's face, Barbara kicked him on the shoulder, throwing it on its side and stabbed it on his head viciously.

Only after it stopped moving she stood up and Daryl caught her when she missteped, shaken by what had just happened.

Barbara turned to the guys and both had shocked but different expressions. Glenn looked at her impressed and a bit surprised. Daryl, on the other hand, was looking at her with almost pride. His intense gaze was somehow tender and it made her blush.

"Thanks," he mumbled reaching out and taking her hand, squeezing it lightly.

Despite the adrenaline of the moment, her heart beat even faster and her skin burned. The girl managed a smiled and nodded squeezing his hand back. His eyes never left hers. She felt the warm of his hand and stepped closer to him.

"Guys, it's Randall," Glenn's voice snapped them out of the moment.

* * *

Brett was walking around the house when he saw the font door opening. He turned around quickly and saw Elle peeking out. The girl looked worried and guilty.

"What happened?" He asked quickly.

"It's Barbie," Ellie said. "She left a while, and she has been back yet."

Brett stopped, his hear racing and he rushed into the house. His sister had to been there. She had to.

It was in that moment that he or anyone else noticed Carl slipping out of the house as well.

* * *

"He's got his neck broken," Barbie said checking Randall's corpse as Daryl stood next to her with the flash light and Glenn crouched next to her.

Then Barbie moved the body and Glenn helped her. The girl looked for bites but she didn't find any.

"He has no bites," she informed them.

"Yeah, none you can see," Glenn suggested.

"No, he didn't died from this," Barbie shook her head.

"How's that possible?" Glenn asked confused.

Barbie nor Daryl didn't say anything. Daryl couldn't offer Glenn a valid answer, he just had a crazy thought. But something in Barbara's demeanor told him, his theory may not be that crazy after all.

Daryl nodded his head at Barbie and helped her up. They started walking back to the house, his hand protectively on her lower back.

Glenn stared at Randall's body a little longer before following them.


End file.
